


Near and Far

by Axelrocks



Series: Lost and Found [2]
Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-17
Updated: 2016-08-19
Packaged: 2018-05-02 01:55:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 41,452
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5229455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Axelrocks/pseuds/Axelrocks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to Lost and Found. The group is heading to Terminus in hopes of finding a safe, permanent place to settle. However, when certain events happen while they are on the road, will they ever make it there? And what will greet them if they do?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

_**September 1982** _

_"This is all your fault," Carol's voice was muffled_ _under_ _the blanket she had over her head. Sitting next to her on the couch, Daryl was trying hard not to laugh at his friend. The TV in front of them had a fuzzy screen from the movie they had just finished._

_"You were the one who wanted to watch a scary movie."_

_"And you were the one who checked it out!" Carol whipped the blanket off her head, causing her head to become staic-y and flair up around her head. This almost caused Daryl to bust out in laughter once more. However, the ferocious glare being sent his way shut him up, quickly._

_"You wanted me to get the scariest movie at the rental place and this is what the guy gave me!"_

_"But_ cannibals _, Daryl? Really?"_

_Carol didn't wait for an answer and got up to_ _retrieve_ _the VHS from the player. She held it between two fingers as if it disgusted her as much as what had been on it and placed it back in its case. "When you leave, take this with you. I don't want it in my house."_

_Daryl took the case and stood. "Are you kickin' me out?"_

_"N-No. Actually, since it_ _s_ _date night, can you stay until my parents come home? Please."_

_He crossed his arms over his chest. "After you were just bein' mean to me? Hmm..."_

_"Please." She latched on to one of his arms and looked at him with pleading blue eyes. "If you leave, the cannibals might get me."_

_Daryl would have laughed if he couldn't tell that Carol was being completely serious. "All right," he said. "I'll stay." Carol did a little jump and wrapped her arms around him._

_"Thank you! I know I'll be safe with you."_

* * *

"Tomorrow, we pack up everything and leave," Rick said, firmly, glancing at everyone sitting around the fire. "Along the way, we can gather more supplies. We'll especially need food. Daryl won't be able to hunt all the time and we can't just rely on him." The former officer glanced at Daryl, who gave him a grateful nod back.

Carol was pressed to his side and Sophia was pressed to hers. It would be nice not to have to go out every morning to hunt, but he would do it, if the group needed food. If Carol and Sophia _needed_  food. He'd do anything for the two of them.

"I want us to leave as soon as possible, so that we travel during the daylight," Rick continued. "Hershel, you know the area the best, have you ever heard of Terminus?"

The old man shook his head. "I haven't, but I have a map in my truck. We can look on there to see if it was an actual place before the Turn or not." Rick nodded in agreement, the shadows from the fire flickering across his face and casting half of it in darkness.

"Everyone get a good night's sleep." Rick stood. "I want Daryl and Maggie on first watch and Glenn and Andrea will take the next watch."

"Let me take watch instead of Glenn," Carol spoke up, surprising some of them. "He was on watch last night and went on a run this morning. He needs to rest." She detangled from Daryl and Sophia. "I have a gun. Daryl gave it to me and I know how to use it."

At first, Rick looked like he would object, but Carol continued to press. "Please, let me do something. I can do it."

"You help cook for us," Lori spoke up. "That's enough."

"I don't want to  _just_  cook and clean. I want to help protect everyone. I want to help protect  _my daughter._ " Daryl stood and placed a comforting hand on Carol's back.

"Let her do it, Rick. I trust her to keep us safe and it's about time you did the same." There was an edge to his voice. He still hadn't forgotten the man for not telling him about Merle, which was something he would  _never_  tell Merle about. If his older brother were to find out, it would add another thing to the list of reasons to kill Rick and it may actually tip him into really doing it.

"Fine," Rick sighed. "You can keep watch, along with Andrea."

"We'll be fine," Andrea spoke up and gave Carol a friendly smile, which she returned. Andrea always seemed to have her back.

"All right, it's settled, then," Rick decided. "Maggie and Daryl, wake them up when it's their turn on watch and everyone else, get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long day." No one said a word and it was almost eerily silent as they all disbursed to their sleeping positions where they laid down for the night.

Carol and Sophia huddled in the sleeping bag and used the blanket as a pillow. Daryl leaned down and kissed Carol on the cheek and nodded at Sophia before he took his place on watch.

A few hours later, after a very uneventful shift on watch, Daryl nudged Carol awake. She looked up at him blurry-eyed and without a word slipped from the sleeping bag. Unfortunately, the movement roused Sophia and she blinked up at the two of them, eyes trying to focus.

"Is it time for you to go, mom?"

"Yeah, baby." She kissed Sophia's cheek and stood. Daryl shrugged off his jacket and handed it to her, knowing that with just her flimsy cardigan she would freeze.

"Thank you." She kissed him, quickly and went to join Andrea on watch.

* * *

Daryl looked down at Sophia, still in the sleeping bag and knew that he wouldn't be sleeping with any kind of cover that night. Though, he had come to care for Sophia almost as if she were his, he still didn't feel comfortable with touching her and snuggling in a sleeping bag, even it was only to keep warm, was a big no-no.

"You can have the sleeping bag, Daryl," her tired voice said.

"It's all right. You can take it."

"You're going to freeze," she slipped out of the bag and shoved it at him, just as stubborn as her mama. "I can go share with Carl."

"Hell no!" It took a bit of control to keep his voice lowered and when he looked at the little girl's face, she saw that she had been only teasing. She had covered her mouth and was giggling quietly into it.

"Back to back, then?" He asked, sliding into the bag and handing her the blanket. "That way, we can stay pretty warm." He would be comfortable with having Sophia pressed to his back.

"Okay," she said and lay down, pressing her small back to his. "Goodnight, Mr. Daryl."

"Night, kid."

* * *

That morning, Daryl woke up warm. He opened his eyes, surprised to see the sun was up and that Carol was in the sleeping bag with him. She must have snuck in before the sun had risen. Rick had looked to have taken watch for both Andrea and Carol because he was the only one up, walking the perimeter. Daryl wondered if that man ever slept.

Carol must have sensed he was awake because she turned in the sleeping bag and faced him with a bright smile. "Good mornin'."

"Mornin'," he mumbled and pulled her close, loving her warmth. "How was watch?"

"Uneventful and boring, but I would do it again in a heartbeat. I like feeling like I contributed to the group's safety."

Daryl didn't say anything and buried his face in her neck. Something shifted at his back and he suddenly remembered that Sophia had been pressed there for most of the night. Turning his head, slightly, he could barely make out the top of her blonde head.

"How did you sleep?" Carol asked, noticing where he was looking.

"Good. But that girl of yours wanted to sleep in the same sleepin' bag as Carl Grimes. I think you need to give her a talkin' to. She's too young for all of that."

She smiled. "If you recall, I was  _younger_  than her when I first kissed you." Daryl felt his face heat up as the memory of their first kiss came to his mind. She had been eleven and he had been ten, a few years younger than Carl and Sophia.

"Let's not tell her that, all right?" He whispered, afraid that Sophia could hear them, despite her being in a deep sleep. "We don't need that boy to come sniffin' around."

"I don't think he likes Sophia like that," Carol said. "I'm pretty sure he still has a crush on Beth."

"And that's why I don't him comin' around. He obviously has a poor choice in woman. Sophia is the best there is." Carol laughed softly and placed her ahead under his chin.

"I love you."

He closed his eyes, loving the words spoken so freely to him. "Love you, too."

* * *

An hour, the rest of the camp was up and packed. Rick and Glenn were over talking with Randall off to the side.

"I think I saw the signs by some railroad tracks," he said. "We moved all over the place, you know, so I couldn't tell you  _exactly_  where I saw them."

"We have a map. We can look up all the tracks around here."

"Which could be  _dozens_ ," Glenn spoke up. "Are we just going to run around looking for railroad tracks?"

Rick sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "We'll have Randall look at the map. Maybe he'll recognize some of the landmarks. Unfortunately, we don't have much to go on at the moment, Glenn."

"You're right," Glenn agreed. "Now, what should we do about Merle?" At the mention of the man, Rick and Glenn glanced in the older Dixon's direction. Merle was leaning against one of the vehicles and looked to be watching Carol and Daryl as they talked quietly in the middle of camp. When he saw that Glenn and Rick were looking at him, he held up his good hand and flipped them off.

"There isn't much we can do." Rick turned away from the man and the vulgar gesture. "As long as he doesn't cause any trouble, he'll be with us. I mean, he  _is_  Daryl's brother. I can't separate them, again." Despite having a good reason to lock Merle in handcuffs, Rick knew he shouldn't' have left him on that roof to die.

"Yeah. And I think the only people we have to worry about him doing anything to, is you and T." Glenn clapped him on the back. "So, I would keep a close eye on him, dumbass."

"Don't worry. I plan on it."

* * *

Once Rick was finished talking with Randall, it was time for everyone to pile into their vehicles. Thanks to Rick and Michonne bringing back a fifth vehicle, they would not be so crowded.

"Are you sure that you don't want to go with Hershel and Beth, sweetie?" Lori asked Sophia when the little girl had followed her and Carl to the green Hyundai. "They have an extra seat and we're going to be a little crowded in here."

"I don't want to go with them," Sophia said, shaking her head. "So, if it's okay, I'd like to go with you and Carl."

"Of course, it's okay." Lori pulled the girl into a side hug and let her climb into the back seat next to Carl, who gave his friend a smile. Randall and RIck were sitting in the front seats as Randall would try his best to lead them in the right direction of Terminus.

Once they could see that everyone was situated, Rick started the car. Behind him, in the powder blue truck, Hershel and Beth sat. Then, came Andrea, Michonne, Glenn and Maggie in the new car they had obtained, then Daryl followed on his motorcycle with Carol on the back and Merle, alone in Daryl's track, made up the end of their caravan.

Rolling down his window, Rick stuck his arm out and gave everyone a thumb's up. They all returned the gesture, except Merle, but with one hand on the steering wheel and the other one...gone, Rick understood why.

"Ready?" He turned to his wife, son and Sophia in the back.

"Ready," they all answered.

Then, they were off to Terminus.


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

The journey down the highway had been a crawl with cars, trucks and other vehicles blocking most of the road. Several times, Rick and some of the other men would have to get out and push or drive cars to the side so they could all get through. At least, this time, they didn't have a large RV to navigate.

It was midday when they finally found relief on the highway and they all stopped for lunch before they tackled the next obstacles sure to come. Some of the cars along the way, he canned foods and stale crackers, so they had something to eat.

Sophia joined Carol and Daryl where they sat on the end of Daryl's truck. Merle still sat in the driver's seat and if Daryl hadn't forced a can of ravioli in his hands, then the older Dixon wouldn't have eaten a thing.

"He's just bein' a stubborn jackass," Daryl muttered to Carol low enough so Sophia couldn't hear.

"At least he's still here with us, though," Carol said.

"You  _want_  him here?" Daryl asked, a little surprised. Honestly, he thought Carol, like everyone else, wished that Merle wasn't with them.

"I do because I know you want him here, too." She reached for his hand and squeezed. "You don't act like it, but I know deep down you're glad he's decided to stick around."

Sometimes it shocked Daryl at how well Carol knew him. "But if he fucks things up for us...or for anyone else, then he has to go. I won't fight for him to stay if he makes it his goal to make everyone's life a livin' hell. Like it wasn't already."

"I don't think he will. He cares about you, Daryl and I don't think he'll do anything to compromise what you have here."

Daryl snorted. "I wish I had the faith in him that you seemed to have, Carol."

"You do and if you don't, you will."

"If only he could hear you say those things," Daryl said. "I don't think anyone's had a good word to say about Merle. Ever."

Beside them, Sophia had listened to their conversation and when they began to speak about Daryl's brother, she turned around and was shocked to catch Merle's eye in the rearview mirror. Lifting her hand, she gave him a tentative wave, which, surprisingly, he returned through the open window.

* * *

When they finished their small meal, Sophia hopped off the bed of the truck to find Carl and Carol leaned her head against Daryl's shoulder as if they were on a date.

"What do you think Terminus is going to be like?" She asked, taking one of his hands in her own and placed them in her lap.

"Don't know. Hopefully, it's a place we can settle in permanently and together. Me, you and Sophia."

"Merle, too."

"Merle, too," he added, grudgingly.

"It would be nice to have a place we could call our own, you know?" He continued.

"And who said I'd move in with you, Daryl Dixon!" She teased and when he leveled her with a look, she couldn't help but giggle.

Daryl reached for her hand and the mood turned serious. "You know what I wish, Carol?"

"What?"

"I wish I hadn't left because I know that we w-"

"Daryl! Carol!"

The mood was shattered and Daryl cursed Rick's timing in his head. He had been about to tell Carol what he thought would have happened between them if he hadn't left. She was sure she had an idea, but he wanted to verbalize. To validate it, somehow.

"Coming!" Carol was the one to answer back and hopped off the bed of the truck. "Looks like we're being summoned," she said, looking disappointed, too, that their moment was being interrupted.

Daryl grumbled and hopped off the truck bed to follow Carol to where Rick and the rest of the group, except Merle were gathered. Sophia and Carl were sitting in one of the cars, talking, but with the door open. Beth was hanging on the outside of the group, but kept shooting glances Carl and Sophia's way.

Rick gave Carol and Daryl a sharp nod when they joined the group and then, turned to address everyone.

"I'd like to discuss what our plans are," he started. "We are going to Terminus, but from what Randall told me is that it could be a few days ride from here. First, we will be backtracking to the town we found Randall in. He said from there, he should be able to remember where his group saw the sign."

"How do you know he isn't planning on having the rest of his group ambushing us?" Glenn asked. It was a valid worry and one that Rick had thought of, it seemed.

"A group of us will scout out the area, first. If it's safe, that's where we will be spending the night."

The group seemed to sigh in relief. No one had wanted to sleep in their cars that night, or have to drive through the night, and they knew that wherever they spent the night in town would be better than sleeping on the hard ground.

"What happens if Terminus doesn't work out for us?" Carol spoke up, causing everyone to turn and look at her. She didn't shrink away from their gazes, she was done doing that. She was just as valuable a member to the group as anyone of them.

"We find someplace else," Rick answered. It was easier to say than do, everyone knew. They had thought that maybe the Greene farm would be a permanent place to settle and look at what had happened to it.

"Now, if everyone is ready to leave, I would like to get to the town before sundown," Rick took command once more and without a word, everyone separated to their vehicles. Carol made sure Sophia was all right before following Daryl back to his motorcycle.

"We need to talk about what you said earlier," Carol said before they mounted the bike. "I would like to hear what you wished for."

"Right now, I wish Merle had his hand," Daryl sighed. "I'd make him ride the bike and we could have the truck. We can't talk on the bike and there's no way I would have this conversation in front of Merle."

"Later, then?" She asked, hopefully.

"Later." He pulled her close and kissed her before they got on the bike and he started it up.

* * *

When they made it to the town, there was still about an hour of sunlight left, which was good. There were about a dozen walkers hanging around the streets, leftover from the gunfight that had taken place there only a few days before.

Daryl climbed off the bike and instructed Carol to go in the car with Lori, Carl and Sophia. Rick, T-Dog, Michonne, Daryl, Maggie and Glenn made quick work of the walkers. Once the place was deemed safe, on the outside anyway, they all convened close to the vehicles. Randall hobbled out of the car and winced when he saw the same fence his leg had been impaled on.

"We came from that way," he said and pointed to the main street that led out of town and away from them. "Somewhere down that road, we'll cross train tracks. We had been following those tracks for a few days when he came across the sign. We decided to head to Terminus, but when we came across the main road, we decided to see what was on it."

Rick nodded, pleased that they had a more set plan, now. Instead, of just going wherever. "All right, the last time we were here we were in the bar. We killed two men in there, so let's avoid that area."

"There are apartments," Maggie spoke up. "About three of them above one of the shops. We can stay there."

"Sounds good," Rick agreed. "Let's park the vehicles somewhere out of sight and then, Maggie will lead the way."

* * *

Forty-five minutes later, they had the apartments cleared out and they began to separate into them. Rick, Carl, Lori, Randall and Andrea took one apartment. Fortunately, each one had two bedrooms and a couch, so no one would have to sleep on the floor.

Glenn and Maggie went into one apartment, knowing that they would be getting a room. Hershel had decided to take the couch, leaving an empty room. Carol and Daryl would take a room in the other apartment, Sophia would be going with them, as well, but had declared that it wouldn't be fair if she got a room to herself because Michonne, T-Dog, and Merle still didn't have a place to stay.

"Beth, you can share a room with me," she said, looking the youngest Greene in the eye. "That way it will free up a room for someone else."

Carol smiled at her daughter, proud at how mature she was being.

"Go on, Bethie," Hershel said. "Michonne can take the bedroom, I'll get the couch and looks like T-Dog will have the arm chair to sleep on."

Beth wordlessly followed the Dixons, Carol and Sophia into the apartment they would share. She looked uncomfortable with having to share a room with Sophia, but the little Peletier didn't say anything as they headed to the room they would be spending the night in. Sophia was still angry with Beth, but she wouldn't bring up what had gone down between them earlier. She was bigger than that and tonight, they would need their rest.

Merle took his place on the couch and watched as Daryl locked the door and made sure the windows were secure. Carol had gone in the other room to say goodnight to Sophia.

"I bet I know what you and that woman are goin' to do once that door is closed," he said, propping his head up on his hand and smirked at his younger brother.

"Sleep," Daryl answered. "Sophia is right next door and you're right here, there ain't no way we'd be doin' that. Besides, we're exhausted."

"Gettin' sick of one other, then?"

"No!"  _Never_. "Everythin' isn't about sex, Merle and tomorrow is goin' to be another long day. So, what don't you shut the fuck up and get some sleep." Daryl grumbled and walked into the room, surprised to see Carol already there.

He shut the door and placed his crossbow right next to it. Carol had stripped herself of her weapons and her pants. "What?" She asked when she saw him staring. "I'm sure with the blankets and your body heat, I'll be warm enough." She slipped under the covers.

Daryl made quick work of his vest and boots. He opted to keep his pants on, but slipped the belt off, so it wouldn't dig into his side. He gathered Carol close and was grateful for the soft bed they were in. His back was already thanking him.

"Night," he mumbled into her hair before placing a kiss on her shoulder.

"Night, Daryl."

* * *

"Sophia?" Beth's voice disturbed the silence in the room and there was a rustling sound as she turned in the bed to face the younger girl.

"What?" Sophia hadn't been sleeping, but she still felt like being snippy.

"I'm sorry about what I said, earlier," the other blonde said softly. "It was wrong of me and I shouldn't have said them because I was upset."

"You're right. You shouldn't have said what you did." She flipped over to face Beth. "But I forgive you."

In the moonlight coming in through the window, Sophia saw Beth beam. "Oh, thank you!" She reached forward and wrapped her arms around Sophia in a hug. The younger girl returned the embraced.

"I'm so glad I can talk with you, now," she said, moving a few inches away. "I missed you. And Maggie too wrapped up in Glenn to give me the time of day, anymore. I needed my friend back."

"I'm glad we can talk, too," Sophia said. "But, right now, I want to sleep." She turned her back to Beth. "Goodnight."

"Oh. Uh, goodnight, Sophia."


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

Sunlight filtered through the dusty blinds and Daryl groaned. Rolling over he tried to smash his face in the pillow, but his internal alarm clock was telling him that it was time to get up and moving. Next to him, Carol mumbled and shifted a little in her sleep. He sighed and finally decided to get up.

Carol's eyes opened when she felt him sit up and she gave him a sleepy smile. "Morning," she mumbled.

"Mornin'," he returned and stood. Already his body craved the soft mattress and the even softer woman next to him.

"Are you going hunting?"

"Yeah." He slipped on his vest and laced up his boots. "Want to come?"

"Sure," she answered and climbed out of bed. Daryl tried hard to keep his eyes from lingering on her legs and ass. If only they could stay in bed a little longer...

"Daryl?" Carol was by the door, fully dressed before he realized he had gotten himself lost in a daydream. "You coming or what?"

He wished...

"Uh, yeah." He walked over to the door and grabbed his bow.

"Just let me tell Sophia where I'm going and I'll meet you out there." Carol kissed him on the cheek and as quietly as she could, opened the door to Beth and Sophia's room. Daryl went out to the hallway to find that Rick was already out there.

"Goin' huntin'," he said to the other man. "Shouldn't be out for more than a few hours."

Rick nodded. "I'm letting everyone rest a bit. We have a long journey ahead of us."

Daryl didn't say anything and leaned against the wall to wait for Carol. Things were still a little tense and awkward between him and Rick, still and he figured it would be like that for awhile.

"Do you think I made the right choice?" Rick broke the silence by asking. "By deciding to go to Terminus, that is?" There were a lot of choices Rick had made in the last several weeks and Daryl was glad that he had clarified.

"Yeah," he answered. "We have no where else to go and this place has to be as good as any. Besides, it's nice to have a purpose. We won't just be out there wonderin' around like we're the damn walkers, you know?"

"You're right. I just hope this works out for the best. We need a place to stay. Lori...the baby."

"I get it, man. I want what's best for my family, too."

Carol stepped out of the apartment and closed the door quietly. "Merle's still asleep," she said, looking at Daryl. Then, she saw Rick. "Oh. Good morning, Rick. Did you sleep well?" It was clear from the dark circles under the man's eyes that he hadn't.

"As well as I could, I guess," he answered. "You two be careful out there, okay?"

"We will," Daryl replied. "See you in a bit."

* * *

Together, Carol and Daryl walked down the steps of the apartment building. Carol clutched her knife in her hand and had a gun on her hip, but Daryl didn't let her step foot outside of the building until he saw that it was clear. There was no way he was going to let anything happen to her.

Daryl surprised Carol as they started making their way to the woods. He had reached out and grabbed her hand, linking their fingers as they walked. As if they were just taking a stroll and not hoping to kill their dinner. Daryl seemed a little stiff, but Carol understood that he probably hadn't done anything like this with a woman before and it made her love him even more.

Carol brought their joined hands up to her mouth and kissed his knuckles, earning her a smile. "Maybe we can have that talk, now," she said. They could have had it the night before in the privacy of their own room, but the allure of a real bed and the fact that they were exhausted had caused them to fall asleep almost instantly.

"We can," Daryl answered. "We'll just have to keep it down, though. I do plan on bringing  _something_  back." He unlinked their hands to wrap an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to place a kiss to her temple.

Finally, they made it to the woods and Carol nudged Daryl with her shoulder. "Does this remind you of when we would look for Caryltopia?"

His eyes took a faraway look and his mouth turned up on the corners. "Yeah, it does. Those were some of the best days of my life, spending that summer with you."

"Same here," she agreed. "Though it was all we had, I'm glad we had it."

Together, they stopped before walking into the woods. "Yesterday, when we were on my truck, I wanted to tell you that I wish I hadn't left because I knew if I stayed and we got to grow up together, we would have gotten married." He looked bashful. "Dixons ain't the marryin' type, but I know I would have tied the knot with you, Carol. I wish we could have been able to raise a family together."

Tears glistened in Carol's eyes and she reached for his hands. "Me, too."

"I wish Sophia could have been mine. I wish we could have had more kids together." The words just kept spilling out of him. He knew it was uncharacteristic of him, but he needed to get everything out unless he exploded.

"I wish we could have had that house with a white picket fence and a dog. I wish I could have come every day to you and the kids. I wish I could have gone to bed with you in my arms and wake up to your smilin' face. There's so much I wish could have happened, but life had to be un-fuckin' fair."

"I wish we could have all those things, too," Carol said. "But we have each other, now and that has to mean something, right? Sophia may not be your blood, but you love her like she is and vice versa. We don't have that house with the picket fence, but maybe when we make it to Terminus, we can."

"You're right. We have now and that's all that matters." He kissed her and cupped the back of her head to deepen the kiss.

"Come on," she said, pulling away and giving him a smile. "We have some hunting to do."

* * *

"You said the signs were on the train tracks?" Rick asked Randall as the group, minus Daryl and Carol, gathered in the small apartment Rick and his family slept in.

"Yeah. That's where we saw them, at least." Hershel was looking at Randall's leg to make sure that no infection had set in the wound.

"The stitches should be ready to come out in a few days," he said standing up from the floor. Then, he nodded to Rick, indicating for him to continue.

"We won't be able to take the vehicles if we have to follow the tracks," Glenn said, leaning against the wall near Maggie. "And our group is too big for us to walk. We need the vehicles."

Rick ran a hand down his face. "What should we do? There's no Terminus on any of the maps of the area, so it has to be place that was built after the Turn."

"Maybe we can split up?" Andrea suggested. Everyone turned to look at her, but she didn't seem phased by their stares. "Some of us can walk the tracks and radio in somehow when we find one of the signs. You said there was a map on them, right?" She faced Randall.

"Only one of the signs had a map that I saw and I didn't get a good enough look at it to remember it."

"Say we do have everyone split up," Rick said. "What will the rest do while the others are on the tracks? Stay here?"

"We could gather supplies," Maggie spoke up. "So that when we do make it to Terminus we can have things to offer them or we can just use them on our journey there. I'm sure those that will be left behind won't want to be idle."

"The children will definitely stay behind along with Lori, Hershel, Randall and Merle. No offense to Hershel, but I would like some other adults to stay behind. Randall is injured and I don't trust Merle," Rick spoke.

"If Glenn is going to be on the tracks, I'm going with him," Maggie said resolutely.

"And we won't know what Daryl and Carol will want to do, since they aren't here, yet." T-Dog spoke for the first time. "I'm assuming that Carol will want to stay behind with her daughter, but if Dixon is going on the tracks, she might want to go with him, as well."

"T's right," Rick agreed. "We'll discuss this more when they return. While we wait, Glenn, why don't you, Maggie, Andrea and Michonne score the town and see if you can find some walkie talkies. I'm not splitting up if we don't have a way to communicate back and forth."

"Got it." Glenn nodded. The four of them, without a word, walked from the room.

"I'll keep watch on the roof. T-Dog, will you join me?" Rick stood and patted his hip to make sure that his Python was still there.

"Sure."

"The rest of you stay here and stay safe." He looked at Lori, who had been sitting in the corner of the room with Carl, Sophia and Beth, she avoided his eyes and ran a hand through Carl's hair.

* * *

When Carol and Daryl returned, they had a few rabbits and a squirrel to offer their large group. Daryl wished he had been able to get a deer, knowing that the meat wouldn't have been stretched so thin. But it was no food and no one complained as they dug into the stew Carol, with some help from Lori, managed to cook up, quickly.

Daryl had told Carol that she shouldn't have to cook, since she had gone out hunting with him earlier. "I didn't kill any of these," she had said. "You did all the work. I was just keeping you company, but thank you for caring."

Since he had confessed all before they gone into the woods, Daryl felt different and he felt that the relationship between him and Carol was different. A good different. It was because now he knew that they were on the same page and had thought the same thing when they thought of what could have happened if Daryl hadn't left.

After they finished their meal, Rick took Carol and Daryl aside and told them of the plan. "I'll give you a little bit to decide what to do. Glenn and Maggie are going to go out to gather supplies for the group that will be staying here."

"All right. We'll let you know in a bit," Daryl answered.

Rick nodded and walked away to debrief Glenn and Maggie before they went on their run. Everyone else was in their rooms, though they left the doors opened, not wanting to be completely separated from one another.

Sophia was in the room she had shared with Beth, who was sitting crossed legged on the bed while Sophia laid sprawled on the end, looking through a teen magazine. When she heard someone stop in front of the door, she looked over her shoulder and gave her mom a smile.

"Hey, mom. Do you want to take a quiz and see what nail color you should wear?" Behind Carol, Daryl snorted and she quickly elbowed him into silence.

"Not now, honey. Daryl and I have to have an important discussion but once we're finished, I promise I'll take that quiz with you."

"Great!" Sophia beamed and then, she went back to her magazine.

Carol and Daryl inched away from the door to their room, but before they shut the door, Carol heard Beth ask, "Can I take that quiz, Sophia?" Carol smiled a little to herself. it looked like the two girls relationship was mending, though slowly.

"You two ain't goin' bump uglies now, are you?" They had almost forgotten that Merle was still sitting on the couch. "Cuz I'm sure there's other things y'all need to be doing besides fuck."

Carol could feel Daryl's angry. It was rolling off him in waves. However, she stepped in before Daryl could say a thing. "And I'm sure there are other things  _you_  can be doing, besides sitting on your ass all day, but you don't hear me saying anything."

Merle opened his mouth to say something. Carol beat him to it, not finished.

"And I better not hear you talking like that when my daughter is within hearing distance, again." With that, she punctuated how serious she was by slamming the door shut. Through the walls, she could hear Sophia and Beth giggling and Merle mumbling something in return.

Carol turned to see Daryl's eyes had grown dark. "If we didn't have anythin' else to do, right now, I would have you out of those clothes in a second. That was hot. No woman has ever talked to Merle like that."

Carol shrugged, trying to act nonchalant about the whole thing. Deep down, it had felt good to talk to Merle like that, especially since she didn't have to be afraid he would hit her, like Ed would have. "Well, I think he'll know better than to underestimate me, now."

"We'll see about that. Merle ain't that smart."

They chuckled together for a moment before getting serious once more. They knew Rick was waiting for there answers. Carol had an idea on what was going to happen, but it was nice that they would actually talk about it.

"I know you probably want to go on the tracks, right?" Carol asked and took a seat on the bed.

Daryl joined her. "I do. I hate bein' idle."

"What about Merle? Do you think he'll want to come with?"

"I won't let him. I wouldn't put it past him to try to get me to leave while I'm out there." Daryl ran a hand through his hair. "Do you think he'll be okay here?"

"I want to stay, to be close to Sophia. I'll keep an eye on him." Carol reached for his hand and squeezed.

"So, you're stayin', then?"

"And you're going. I knew that was what would happen and I'm okay with that. Just promise you'll come back in one piece."

Daryl leaned forward and kissed her. "I will. I promise."

"Should we tell Rick, then?" Carol pulled away.

He cupped the back of her head and pulled her close to kiss, again. "Sure. But I figure he can wait a few minutes."

* * *

"All right, sounds good," Rick said once he learned what Carol and Daryl were doing. "Honestly, I'm relieved to know that you're staying behind, Carol." He held up his hands when he saw the look on her face. "I mean it in a good way. Daryl has been teaching you how to shoot and I think you're a fairly good shot, now. Most of our fighters are going to be on the tracks, so we'll definitely need you here."

"If Merle got his head out of his ass, he could be useful in that department, too," Daryl sighed.

"You know that saying, 'you can't choose your family...'" Rick lifted his hand, as if he was going to place it on Daryl's shoulder, but stopped it in midair and let it fall back to his side. Carol had noticed the awkward gesture and gave Daryl an odd look.

Daryl gave a slight shake of his head and Carol knew that she would get it out of him later. There was something going on with him and Rick.

"There anything you need us to do before you all head out?" Carol asked, hoping to dissipate the tension in the air.

"Nothing I can think of at the moment," he said and ran a hand through his hair. "But if anything comes up, I'll let you both know."

"Okay." Carol smiled.

"I'm going to spend some time with Carl and Lori, if you need me." With a final nod at the both of them, Rick walked away.

Once he was gone, Carol opened her mouth, but Daryl spoke before she could. "He knew where Merle was." At Carol's confused look, he continued. "When they were questioning Randall, he said something about knowing where Merle was and Rick and Shane decided to keep it from me."

Carol gasped. "But, why?"

Daryl shrugged. "Don't know. It ain't like I was goin' to just leave to look for him and never come back. I had you and Sophia to come back to. It was just a shitty thing to do on his part, so I ain't too happy with him at the moment."

"And you shouldn't be." She reached for Daryl's hand and squeezed.

"Merle can't find out about that, though. He'd kill Rick, if he knew."

"I won't tell him. Promise."

Daryl gave her a half smile. "I know you won't." He tugged on her hand. "Now, why don't we find somewhere private to be for a few hours. Somewhere where my brother ain't within earshot."


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter Four**

An hour before sunset, Maggie and Glenn returned to the building with a car full of supplies. T-Dog, Daryl and Michonne helped unload the vehicle with Glenn and Maggie. T-Dog reached into the back seat and hefted a cardboard box full of canned goods. "So, be honest," he said, stopping Glenn and Maggie as they were on their way to gram more supplies. "Did you spend  _all_  that time you were out gathering supplies?"

Glenn's face went pink. "U-Uh, yeah. Of course."

Daryl walked by, arms full. "Man, you're still a shitty liar."

Maggie, instead of going to her boyfriend's defense, shrugged and looked at him. "Daryl's right. You are." This caused the three of them to chuckle, even stoic Michonne cracked a smile at Glenn's expense.

"You guy's suck," Glenn mumbled and ducked into the truck of the car to hide his still red face.

Daryl was still smiling when he climbed up the stairs and passed off the supplies to Andrea and Rick, who were putting them away in Rick and Lori's kitchen. Carol peeked out from the doorway after Andrea walked through it. She and Lori were cooking a meal on the stove. The building had luckily been run on gas, so they didn't have to build a fire to cook.

"Why are you smiling, Daryl? Not that I'm complaining, of course. It looks good on you."

"We were just giving Short Round a hard time outside."

Carol shook her head, but smiled. "That poor boy."

"Yeah, well that poor boy got a few hours of being completely alone with the woman he loves. There's nothing 'poor' about that."

"Well, if I recall," Carol began and placed her hands on he hips. "A certain  _hunter_  took the woman he loves out hunting for a few hours this morning. I'm sure they were completely alone, too." She mocked glared at him.

"Yeah, yeah." Daryl kissed her on the cheek and went back down the stairs to help with the rest of the supplies.

* * *

That evening, everyone huddled out in the hallway and enjoyed one last meal before they were all separated. Carol was sitting with her side pressed to Daryl's and legs bent to her chest as they leaned against the wall. Sophia had her back pressed against Carol's legs. She was talking with Carl, who was sitting on the other end of the hallway. Beth was down by her father, sister and Glenn at the other end of the hallway. Merle hadn't joined them; instead he ate his meal on the couch in his room.

Michonne had been sitting by herself, katana lying next to her body, a few feet away from Carol. She still hadn't grown completely comfortable with everyone, but she had been on her own for must of the time since the world had ended and Carol didn't blame her. Andrea sat near the woman on the other side of the hall. She hadn't been the same since Dale's death, but she was trying to be. T-dog was also sitting close to Michonne and the Grimes's family was on his other side.

The hallway was full of quiet conversations.

Carol tried not to think about the fact that in the morning Daryl would be leaving them for she didn't know how long. The only positive was that he would be with a group of people that were perfectly capable of surviving and that would be keeping an eye on each other's back. She wouldn't know what to do if something were to happen to Daryl.

"Somethin' on your mind?" Daryl leaned down and whispered in her ear so that Sophia couldn't hear.

"No," she lied and quickly took a bite of her meal, hoping it would deter him. Besides, what she was thinking wasn't worth talking about, anyway.

"You're lyin'," Daryl said and nudged her. "And you're just as bad as Glenn when it comes down to it."

"Oh really? What if I  _want_ you to think I'm a bad liar, so that when I do lie to you then you wouldn't know."

"You sayin' you'd lie to me?" The question was teasing.

"Never!" She laughed softly and ducked her head to see Sophia looking right at her.

"Mom, are you and Daryl flirting?" Carl snorted a laugh from where he could hear everything on the other side of the hall.

"Well, uh..." Carol was at a slight loss for words.

Daryl leaned forward. "If your mom and I are flirtin', Soph, then you and Carl flirt  _all_  the time." He leaned his back on the wall, again, and winked at Carol.

"Ew, gross!" Carl made a face, much like the one he had made when he had tasted wine for the first time. "Sophia and I don't flirt!"

"Then, Daryl and I weren't flirting," Carol said.

"Okay, you weren't," Sophia agreed, after making the same face as Carl. She, then, stood up with her plate and walked into Lori's apartment with the dirty dish. A few seconds later, Carl followed, even though he still had food on his plate.

"That boy as a crush on Sophia," Daryl whispered when the two preteens were gone.

Carol smiled and whispered back, "I know."

"He finally made a good choice."

* * *

"I want you to be careful while I'm gone," Daryl said as he shut the door quietly to their room later that night. "I wish you and Sophia could come with so I can keep an eye on you, but it's safer for you to stay."

Carol wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his chest. "I know. Just hurry back all right. You find out how to get to Terminus and you get your butt right back, you understand?"

"I will." He pulled away from her to get ready for bed. Carol did the same and a few minutes later, they were cuddled together under the covers on the blanket. Not for the first time, Daryl marveled at how he was with Carol, at how easy it was to be this way with her. The next few days would be some of the hardest of his life.

The next morning, everyone was quiet as they ate breakfast, which consisted of granola bars and water. Daryl hadn't gone out to hunt, wanting to spend as much time with Carol as possible, and no one felt like cooking anything. Lori was going through another round of morning sickness and didn't even feel liking moving, but she was there with Carl to say goodbye to Rick when the time came for it.

Half of the group was going to leaving and Carol tried not to think about those that were being left behind. It was mostly children, an old man, an injured man, a pregnant woman and her. Oh, and Merle, but she wasn't sure how much use he would be if the time came down to fight. He'd probably just look after himself.

With Sophia pressed to her side, Carol gave Daryl one last kiss goodbye, hating that it would be their last for a while. "Stay safe, okay?"

"You, too." Daryl said and then, stumbled back when Sophia detached from Carol and threw her arms around Daryl's middle.

"You better come back, Mr. Daryl," she said, words muffled into his shirt. "Or me and my mom are going to come looking for you."

"She's right," Carol said with a smile. "You're stuck with us, now. We're practically apocalypse married, now." She winked.

"Don't worry, kid," Daryl said. "I'll always come back to you and your mom. No matter what."

* * *

The apartment was silent those few hours after the half of the group left. The arrangement of the rooms had changed. Merle and Randall now had their own apartment and bed. Both hadn't liked sleeping on a couch. Lori, Carl and Hershel were in another apartment while Carol, Sophia and Beth were in the other.

Carol made sure that each room had a weapon of some kind, even Sophia had a gun in her room just in case. Their numbers may have been smaller, but she was going to make sure that they weren't weak. She wouldn't allow anything to happen to any of them. Not even Merle.

Carl, Beth and Sophia were in Carol's apartment and Merle and Randall were in their own. Lori, Hershel and Carol were gathered in Lori's kitchen, sitting at the table. "Should we keep watch at night while they're gone?" Hershel asked.

"I don't know. Should we?" Lori looked to Carol.

"If we do, it'll be between the three of us. Randall is no condition to be on watch, yet, and I can't guarantee if Merle will."

"Last night, we were fine with no one on watch. Knock on wood." Hershel knocked on the tabletop.

"Okay. Tonight, we'll go without watch," Carol decided. "But bar your doors, just in case." She felt confident and proud that they seemed to be looking at her for instruction.

"Mom!" Sophia's voice startled them and they were on their feet in an instant. Sophia rushed in the room.

"Daddy! Carol!" Beth followed quickly after.

"Where's Carl?" Lori asked, panicked. Something was wrong and her son was the only person who hadn't run into the room.

"He's still in our room," Sophia answered and tugged on her mom's hand.

"There was a car driving up and down the street," Beth said, sounding scared. "And there's a white cross on the back window."


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

Of course, something would happen while many of their group was gone. Carol told Sophia and everyone to stay in the room while she went to hers to peek out the window. Their room was the only one that faced the street. With her back flat against the wall beside the window, Carol slowly peeked through the curtain. In the other hand, she held her gun.

Just as Beth said, there was a car slowly driving down the street. It was coming toward her, so she couldn't see the cross but she didn't doubt Beth when she mentioned it. Whoever was inside the vehicle seemed to be looking for something, but they didn't stop to get out and Carol hoped it would stay that way. She didn't know if they were friendly or not and she really didn't want to deal with them if they happened to be unfriendly.

"What should we do?" Hershel startled Carol by speaking. Somehow he had managed to detangle himself from his daughter to find Carol.

"Have everyone gather in Lori and Carl's room. Lock the door. I'll get Randall and Merle, if he'll even come." Carol stepped away from the window, making sure to place the curtain carefully back in place so the people in the car wouldn't see the movement.

"All right." Hershel nodded.

"Make sure you have weapons in there in case someone that isn't one of us tries to get in."

"And will you be fine?"

"Yeah, I got this." She showed him the gun. "Daryl taught me how to use it."

"Okay, then. Just knock on the door and let us know it's you," Hershel instructed and turned to walk back to the room. Carol watched him go and then, peeked through the window one last time to make sure no one hadn't gotten out. Now, the car was going down the other way and Carol saw the white cross.

Seconds later, she threw open the door to Merle and Randall's room, which had formerly housed Glenn, Maggie, Hershel, Michonne and T-Dog. The door to Randall's door was closed, but Merle shot up into a sitting position on the couch.

"What the hell? Do you not know how to knock, lady?"

"Keep your voice down," Carol ordered. "There's a car driving up and down the street and I want you and Randall to join us in Lori's room just in case they scoop this place out."

"I can take care of myself."

"With what weapon? I know for a fact Rick hasn't allowed you to touch a gun since you've joined us and the same goes for Randall." Carol crossed her arms and stared down the older Dixon. "So, if someone wants to come in here to kill you, what are you going to do? Beat them to death with the couch cushions?"

"Screw you."

"No thanks." She walked over to Randall's door and knocked on it.

"Oh, so you do know how to knock?"

Carol ignored him and waited for Randall to open the door. "Come on, Randall, let's go," she said once he opened the door.

"Where?" Randall's eyes grew wide and scared.

"Lori's room. There's some people driving up and down the street. People we don't know and I want everyone to be together. Merle's decided not to join us. Are you going to?"

"Yeah." He nodded his head.

"Let's go and try to be quiet. Just in case."

Without another glance at Merle on the couch, Carol left the room with a limping Randall right behind her. If Merle didn't want to have anything to do with them, that was fine with Carol. He was just hurting himself.

Keeping as quite as possible, Carol led Randall to Lori's apartment and knocked on one of the bedroom doors. "It's me," she said when she was met with silence after the knocks. Hershel opened the door and Carol peeked in to see Lori, Carl, Beth and Sophia huddled on the bed. Hershel had been sitting in one of the chairs by the window with his shotgun.

"Are they still out there?" He asked, closing the door behind them.

"Yeah. They're just driving up and down the street, like they're looking for something. They haven't stopped and gotten out of the car. Well, they hadn't since the last I saw them."

"What do you think they want?" Beth's voice sounded scared as she pressed into Lori's side

"I don't know," Carol answered. "Let's just hope they leave soon." She went to the door and placed her hand on the knob.

"Where are you going now, mom?" Sophia hopped off the bed and grabbed Carol's arm. "Are you going to get Merle?"

"Merle didn't want to come. I'm going to our room to keep an eye on the car." Sophia wrapped her arms around Carol's waist and squeezed.

"Okay, mom. Be careful, all right."

She smoothed down her girl's blonde hair. "Don't worry, baby. I will."

* * *

They had been walking for a few hours along the tracks and they were all starting to feel the effects on their feet. It had been awhile since any of them had to walk the distance they had so far since they had vehicles.

There had also been no sighting of the Terminus signs. "Maybe we're going in the wrong direction," Glenn spoke up from where he walking alongside Maggie.

"I hope to God that isn't the case," Andrea mumbled. "I don't think I can handle having to walk all the way back."

Rick, so focused on his task, hadn't heard what any of them had said behind him. "We'll make camp in a few hours," he said. "Daryl and I will take first watch while the rest of you divide up the two tents."

Everyone gave each other odd looks behind his back. It was clear that Rick wanted to find Terminus and his mind wasn't on nothing else. Daryl could understand that. Rick wanted a safe place for his family, just as he wanted a safe place for his family, as well.

When the sun was starting to set, Rick stopped at a clearing next to the tracks. Everyone helped set up camp. Glenn, Maggie, Andrea and T-Dog helped set up the two small tents they had packed along. Daryl wasn't looking forward to being crammed into one of those.

Michonne started to set up a fire while Rick walked the perimeter, keeping an eye out for walkers while everyone was busy. Daryl walked across the tracks to the woods in hopes of finding something they could cook over the fire that night.

As he walked through woods quietly, eyes sharp for any threats or any sign of food, he wondered what Carol was up to and hoped everything was all right.

* * *

"What the hell are you doing?" Carol whispered, watching as the car with the cross made another sweep up and down the street. The sun was close to setting and Carol hoped that they would leave by the time it grew dark. The door behind her creaked on its hinges and Carol whipped around, gun raised and ready to shoot.

"Whoa, put the damn gun down, lady." Merle held up both hands, or hand, when he saw that the gun was aimed for his head. One shot would kill him and make sure he wasn't coming back, too.

"I'd say sorry," Carol said and put the gun down. "But it's just you."

Merle gave her a dirty look and walked over to where she stood. "So, what's goin' on, now?" He went to pull back the curtain on the window, but Carol grabbed his arm.

"Stop," she hissed. "They're still out there and the last thing we need is for them to know we're here."

"I was just goin' to take a little peek."

Carol sighed and rolled her eyes. "Here." She lifted a corner of the curtain and allowed Merle to peek through. He look for a few seconds and whistled low under his breath.

"What the fuck are they doin'?" He asked straightening.

"I was wondering the same thing." She crossed her arms. "They've been going up an down the street for awhile, now. I just want them to leave."

"They ain't drivin' up and down the street anymore, sugar. They're out of the car."

"What?" Carol went to the window and sure enough two men, dressed in police uniforms had parked the car down the street and were now walking slowly in the direction of their building. She didn't even give herself time to wonder why they were wearing police uniforms before she was running to Lori's apartment. She didn't even check to see if Merle was following her.

"it's me," she said, trying to keep her voice calm after she knocked the on the bedroom door. Hershel opened the door, like last time.

"Everyone, get on the other side of the bed and stay low," she ordered.

"What's going on?" Beth screeched, panicked. Sophia grabbed her arm and pulled her down to the floor. She looked just as scared as Beth, but her mouth seemed to be glued shut.

"Everything is going to be fine." Carol gathered Sophia in her arms. "We just need to lay low for a little bit, okay? And we're going to have to be quiet, too." She looked over at Hershel. "They got out of their car. I don't know where they're heading, but we all need to stay here just in case."

"Probably should have gone pee earlier, then," Lori said with a slight smile, hoping to ease the worry and fear that was almost suffocating in the room.

"I'll get you a bucket." Carol winked.

"Mom, you aren't going back out there. Are you?" Sophia looked up at her mom, eyes wide and fearful.

"I will if I have to," she said. "I have to keep you safe."

There was a knock on the door and everyone jumped at the unexpected noise. "We can trouble. They're comin' this way," Merle's voice spoke through the wood.

"What do we do?" Hershel asked.

Carol's mind raced. They could stay there and shoot, if it came down to that. But she wasn't sure if she was ready to actually kill a living human. Or they could go, find another place to hole up until the two men left.

The second option sounded the best.

"There's a stairwell that leads to the back of the building," she said. "Let's get out of here and find someplace else until they leave. Hershel and Merle, grab what you can from the kitchens and put them in a bag. It probably won't make a difference, but it'll help them to not know someone was here."

Miraculously, Merle didn't protest and followed the older man out to the kitchen. Beth, having lost her solid person to cling to, went to Lori and hovered close to her side.

"The rest of you," Carol turned and addressed the five members that were left. "We need to go down those stairs as quietly as possible. Understand?" Everyone nodded and stood to their feet. "And Lori, I hate to say this, but you'll have to hold your pee for a little longer," she said with sympathy, knowing the struggle of having one's bladder be a soccer ball for a growing baby.

"I'll try. But if I pee my pants, no one can laugh at me." She pointed to each of the kids, earning a smile from Sophia and Carl. There was a slight tremble of fear in Lori's voice, but she was doing her best to not scare the kids and for that Carol was grateful.

"Hershel and Merle will follow. Come on." With Carol in front, she led them past the kitchen and out into the hallway. She paused for a moment, hoping to hear anything if the two men had broken in downstairs. But there was silence.

Together, the six of them made it to the back staircase. Carol prayed there was no squeaky stair and started to descend. Sophia was practically plastered to her back and Beth's hand was glued to Sophia's. Lori had a hand on Beth's shoulder and a hand in Carl's. Randall brought up the rear and when Hershel and Merle joined them, Merle shouldered the bags with their supplies while Hershel helped the injured Randall along.

Carol made it to the back door first and opened it to make sure that the coast was clear. The back of the building lead into the woods and Carol would have suggested they run into it, if it weren't growing dark and they had no flashlights.

"Keep to the buildings and _stay_ together," she instructed, quietly. Everyone nodded, even Merle. He was no dummy and realized how serious the situation was.

Things were going good until they passed a large dumpster and a scream pierced the air. A half-rotted walker had been lying by the dumpster, nearly covered by bags, and aroused at the noise of them approaching. Its bony hand had reached out and grabbed Beth's ankle. The blonde free of Sophia and pulled her leg free, right into the arms of another walker that had snuck around the other side of the dumpster. Carol thought fast and stabbed the walker before it could bite Beth.

The noise of the scuffle had alerted any nearby walkers and soon a dozen were coming from the trees. Merle cursed and backed up. With no weapon, he was useless.

"Everyone stay together and behind Lori, Hershel and I." They were the only ones with knives and they didn't want to risk using guns. However, if the men were out of their car, they had heard Beth's scream.

"Daddy! Beth cried when a walker snatched too close to her blonde ponytail. Sophia whimpered when that same walker made a grab for her. Carol turned quickly and stabbed it in the eye. More and more continued to come. Soon, if they didn't move, they would get surrounded.

"We need to find a ladder or something," Carol cried, looking around. "Getting up on higher ground will allow us a few minutes to think."

"Uh, I ain't climbin' no ladder, lady," Merle growled. "One hand, remember?"

"Beth!" Lori's cry startled them and they turned to see the teenager take off down an alley between two buildings. Two walkers were after her. Lori cursed and ran after. Carol didn't have time to think about the two of them at the moment. She was more focused on getting the walkers threatening her child.

Finally. A few minutes later, and after handing both Randall and Merle a weapon, the walkers were dispatched. "We have to find Bethie," Hershel said urgently, slightly out of breath. But that didn't stop him from taking off in the direction Lori and Beth had gone. Carol stopped him before he ran into the street and the sound of male voices had them freezing.

"Well, look what we have here, Gorman." It was one of the police officers. They were just down the street a ways. They stood in front of Beth and Lori, who huddled close.

"Please," Lori begged. "Don't hurt me or my daughter."

"Don't worry," the other officer said. Gorman. "We won't. Is it just the two of you?"

"Y-Yes." Lori didn't even glance in their direction.

"Then, you must come with us," Gorman said. "We can't have two lovely ladies out here on their own."

"That's okay," Lori said quickly. "We can look after ourselves. Thank you."

"We insist." Gorman grabbed Beth by the arm and the officer grabbed Lori.

Carol held back Hershel, who wanted to run out there to save his daughter. "We can't," she whispered. "They have guns and they can kill Beth, Lori or even one of us if we go out there."

"That's my daughter!"

"And that's my pregnant friend. We need to act rationally here."

"We shouldn't have left the damn apartments," Merle grumbled. "We could have taken those fuckers by surprise."

"I didn't see you offering up any suggestions!" Carol hissed.

"Mom, quiet," Sophia hushed them and then, turned to peek around the corner. "They're taking them to the car. I think they said something about Atlanta."

"We need to go!" Hershel watched in despair, knowing he couldn't do anything, as the two men loaded Lori and Beth into the car with the cross and drove off.

"We can't," Carol sighed, slumping against the building. This was her fault. If she had just had them all stay in the apartment buildings, Lori and Beth would still be there. She just hadn't wanted anyone to get hurt if those men found them there. "We have to wait until Rick and everyone comes back. We don't have the numbers to go after them, and I'm not taking Carl or Sophia with."

"That could be days."

"I know." She felt like crying. "I know."

Hershel's face softened and surprisingly, he pulled Carol into a hug. "This isn't your fault. Come on. Let's head back to the apartments and figure out our next step." Hershel lead the way with Carl, Merle and Randall following close behind.

A small hand slid into Carol's and she looked down at her daughter. "Don't worry, mom. We'll get them back and they'll be okay." She squeezed her hand and caused Carol to smile.

"We will," she agreed.

Together, they followed the remainder of their group back to their rooms. This time, they all gathered in one room. Carol's. Carol and Sophia took one room. Hershel and Carl, the other. Randall and Merle camped out in the living room and for once, Merle didn't complain.

Keeping watch at the window, Carol stared out the glass and finally let tears slip down her cheeks. "Please, hurry back, Daryl," she whispered.


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With this chapter, I want to say rest in peace David Bowie. During my senior year of high school, I was obsessed with him. My condolences go out to the Bowie family. We really lost a legend.

**Chapter Six**

That night, after his few hours on watch with Rick, Daryl laid in the tent he now shared with Rick. The former police officer had tossed and turned for a while before finally falling asleep. Daryl was having trouble falling asleep, as well, even though he had remained still. Ever since the sun had set, there was a heavy weight in his gut. Something didn't feel right.

It was taking everything in him to not get out of that tent and head back to Carol in town. Part of him thought he was only feeling that way because he was away from Carol and the other part actually thought something was wrong back there. Maybe in the morning, he would convince Rick to let him head back on his own. He never should have left, honestly. Rick had enough people with him to find Terminus.

 _I hope you're okay, Carol,_ he thought before finally shutting his eyes and giving in to sleep.

* * *

T-Dog slipped into the tent an hour before sunrise. Daryl decided he wasn't going to sleep anymore and got up, giving T more room to spread out. Rick was still out cold, surprisingly. The last few days must have weighed on their leader and now, he was finally allowing himself to sleep the night through.

"Where you going, man?" T-Dog asked, lying down. "There's enough room in here for the three of us. Promise to stay on my side."

"Naw, I'm good. Couldn't sleep anyway, so I thought I'd do some huntin'." He slipped his boots on and grabbed his crossbow.

"If you get a deer, I'll be your new best friend." T winked. "I'm starving and some venison sounds good right about now."

"I'll do my best. Now, get some sleep before Rick wakes your ass up in a few." Daryl slipped out of the tent and stretched in the early morning dimness. Andrea and Michonne were standing together on the tracks talking quietly while keeping an eye on the forest across the way.

Daryl nodded his head as he past them and Andrea gave him a small wave back. Michonne had been with them for a few days, now, but had seemed to open to a few members of the group like Andrea and Carol. Daryl was grateful for the woman, though. When Carol had run into the woods, walkers on his ass, Michonne had been the one to save her and point her in the right direction of the highway.

Michonne was the only new addition to their group who was actually pulling their own weight. Randall couldn't help it. He had a bum leg which would take a while to heal and Merle...well, Merle didn't want to help out. He wanted to make everything as difficult as he could. However, he was stuck with them. Daryl wasn't going to leave the group with him and Merle wasn't going to leave without him.

Daryl hoped that Merle wasn't giving Carol, or anyone else back at town, a hard time.

* * *

Carol woke up when she felt the warmth at her back disappear. Sitting up, she saw that Sophia had climbed out of bed and had been in the process of tiptoeing to the door when she saw her mom.

"You're up early," Carol said, glancing at the window to see that the sun was barely peaking over the horizon.

"Couldn't sleep any longer, so I was going to check up on Carl to see how he's doing." Carol had been shocked when the boy hadn't demanded to go out and look for his mom. However, he really hadn't said much of anything since the kidnapping.

"Go on, then. I'll start breakfast." Tears quickly came to her eyes when she realized that no one would be helping her prepare it. Normally, Lori would be at her side.

They needed to find her and Beth and fast. But they didn't know where to begin. Atlanta was huge and supposedly overrun. Where could those men be hold up and how many of them were there?

When she walked into the living room, she saw that everyone was up. Sophia and Carl sat by Randall on the couch while Merle sat at the kitchen table with Hershel across from him. The older man looked as if he hadn't slept in days and Carol didn't blame him. His youngest was out there with two strange men.

"You two hungry?" She asked, hoping to get something out of them and ease the tension.

"Starvin'," Merle replied and Hershel remained silent. Carol wanted to reach across to grab the old man's hand and tell him everything was going to be okay, but at that point they wouldn't sound very assuring to him. She knew _exactly_ how it felt to have a missing daughter.

Carol whipped up something quick and distributed it to the remaining group members. The room was silent, except for the quiet murmurings of Sophia as she talked with Carl. Carol didn't know who looked more distraught. Carl or Hershel.

"If Rick and Daryl don't come back with the group tomorrow, I'll go look for them," Carol said before she could even think it through. One person going into Atlanta on their own was a suicide mission, but she needed to do _something._ She couldn't help but feel responsible for the reason why they were gone, even though the two men could have found them eventually.

"You can't go alone, missy. Daryl'll kill you, if the walkers don't first."

"That's why you'll come with," she said with finality.

"Like hell I am."

"Like hell am I going to let you stay here without me. You're coming." The room grew silent and all eyes were on them. Carol didn't take notice of them and focused on staring Merle down. Hershel got up from the table with his plate and went to sit by Randall. Not wanting any part of the stare down.

"Let's negotiate, then." Merle stood and with his head, pointed to the door leading to the hall. Carol nodded and followed, closing the door behind them.

"If I go with, I get a weapon and when I get back, you convince Officer Dick to let me carry one at all times."

"So you can turn around and use it on him? Not going to happen." She crossed her arms. Not willing to move an inch.

"We're livin' in a world where we have to shoot dead fuckers in the head to survive and you ain't goin' to let me have one?"

Carol didn't want to fold, but she knew he was right. After a few minutes of warring with herself in his head, she answered, "Fine. But if he _does_ let you have one and you harm any one of my family, I'll slit your throat while you sleep."

* * *

Daryl's decision to stay on with the group came when he returned to camp, one rabbit hooked to his built, to see that a small herd of about fifteen walkers was approaching them. Luckily, everyone was up and about and were ready to take down the snarling monsters. Fifteen was a manageable number for a group of their size and skill, but what if they ran into something bigger on the way? That one person could make the difference.

"Glad you came when you did," Rick said and walked up to him, out of breath. "I know how much you want to go back, but you're needed here."

Daryl didn't say anything. Sometimes, Rick's cops training got on his damn nerves.

"Look, I want to go back, too. But I'm sure Lori and Carol are fine."

"Yeah," he said after a moment. "I'm sure they are."

After they cooked the rabbit, which was spread pretty thin between the seven of them, Rick motioned for them to pack up their things and start down the tracks once more.

"Man," T-Dog sighed and fell in step beside Daryl. "I hope we find this damn sign soon." Daryl couldn't agree more.

* * *

**Thanks for reading!**


	7. Chapter Seven

**Chapter Seven**

The sign was found by midday.

Instantly, Rick took out a pad of paper and jotted down the map. Daryl wanted to turn around and head back once the last line was drawn, but Rick slipped the paper in his pack and motioned for them to huddle together.

"It says 'Sanctuary for All'," he recited from the top of the sign. "There's no way we know that for sure. The plan is to have some of you follow the directions and check the place out."

"You want us to split up?" Daryl asked.

"I know the plan isn't solid, but I don't want us to walk into a trap. The two that scout the place out can find a place to hole up somewhere as they scout Terminus. The rest of the group should be up there within a week."

"And what if the place is a trap?" Andrea stepped forward to ask.

"Then, we'll have a meet up place. We will meet there with them and go on to Terminus, if it is safe. And if it's not, we'll still meet there and move on to something else," Rick answered. "I realize there are plenty of things that can go wrong with this, so we need two people who are quick on their feet and work well together."

Everyone turned at once to look at Glenn and Maggie.

* * *

Waiting for the group to come back was the worst kind of torture. Hershel and Carl took turns looking out the window, hoping that somehow Lori and Beth would materialize on the street alive and well.

"Twelve more hours and we'll be on the road to Atlanta, missy." Merle took the empty seat next to Carol at the table. From where she sat, she had a clear view of everyone in the living room. Randall was dozing off on one end of the couch and Sophia was reading a book by candlelight on the other end.

"I know," Carol sighed. The words she had said without thinking were coming back to haunt her, but she couldn't back down now. She had told Hershel she'd look for Beth and Lori. "Daryl is going to kill me," she mumbled and placed her head in his hands.

"Not if he comes before we leave. Then, he and I can go look for that girl and Officer Friendly's wife."

"Uh. I don't think so."

"And why not?" He asked, trying to appear innocent and failing. Carol knew that even if Merle were ever innocent of something, he'd still look guilty.

"You leave and you won't come back. I'm not stupid."

"Aw. Do you have so little faith in Daryl that he wouldn't come back to you?" Merle was baiting her.

"Of course not. But I  _do_  have faith that you would do something to him that would make him leave with you." She tried hard to keep her voice down so that no one else in the room could hear their conversation.

"Oh!" Merle clutched his chest. "You wound me!"

"Shut up." Carol stood up, done with the conversation and walked over to where her daughter was sitting. "Time for bed, sweetie." She ran a hand through Sophia's blond hair. "Carl, are you coming to?" The boy stood from the floor where he had been sitting by Sophia's feet and silently nodded before following them to the room.

"The bed is big enough for the three of us," Carol said as she tucked the two in. "I'll come back in a little while  _and_ I'll be sleeping between the two of you." Carol tapped Sophia's nose with a finger, who rolled her eyes.

"Mom," she sighed. However, it did get a tiny smile from Carl, so Carol considered it a win.

"Sleep tight, baby." She kissed Sophia on the cheek and did the same for Carl, knowing that it was something Lori did, as well.

"Night, mom."

Carol blew out the candle on the nightstand and slowly walked out of the room. When she closed the door, she made sure to open it just a crack in case one of them called out. As she left the room, she hoped this wouldn't be the last time she tucked her daughter in.

* * *

Lori tried to put on a brave face as the car they were in drove into the streets of Atlanta. Beth clung to her side and every once in awhile let out a sob. It was all so traumatizing for the girl. Being taken away from her father and being forced into a car by strange men. If Lori had been alone, she would have been crying, too. But she had to be strong. For Beth and for the baby growing in her stomach.

The car stopped and the two men climbed out. One opened the door and grabbed Beth, who let out an alerted scream before being silenced with a hand over her mouth. "Quiet," the man hissed. "You want to alert every walker in Atlanta to where we are?"

"And where are we?" Lori asked when the other man pulled her out. They stood in front of a very large structure, one that looked familiar, but it was too dark to make out what it was.

"Grady Memorial Hospital."

"A hospital?" Lori's free hand ghosted over the slight bulge in her stomach.

"We'll show you to a room and then, we'll introduce you to Dawn." The man holding Beth spoke. They were making their way to a door. Other men dressed as police officers met him there.

"Dawn?" Lori asked, trying to find out as much as she could about this place, though, she didn't know how much help that would be. Rick was still out there somewhere and there was no way Carol and the group back at town knew where they were.

 _At least, my baby will be born in a hospital,_  Lori thought as they were led into the building.

* * *

They stopped for the night, even though Daryl wanted to keep walking straight through. The heavy feeling in his gut hadn't gone away since it had appeared that morning. "You feeling off, too?" Rick joined him on watch while everyone settled into the tents.

"Been feelin' this way for a while," he answered.

"I started feeling it when we said goodbye to Glenn and Maggie." He took a seat on the large rock Daryl was leaning against and placed his head in his hands.

"Do you think it has something to do with Glenn and Maggie or something back home?"

"Don't know. I know Glenn and Maggie are capable of being out there on their own, but we left Lori and Carol with Hershel and Merle."

"Carol is capable of keepin' everyone safe," Daryl defended.

"You're right. I'm sorry. Carol's changed a lot from the quarry and I'm positive it has a lot to do with you, doesn't it?"

"She's always had the strength in her; she just needed the chance to let it show."

"It didn't take too long for you two to get together."

"We knew each other when we were younger.  _A lot_  younger," he said. No one else knew the story of how they met and became friends. Not even Merle. "She was my best friend the summer I was nine." She had been his  _only_  friend. "I had a crush on her back then and when we met, again, it grew into something more." The words felt odd coming from his mouth, but he couldn't take them back, now.

"That sounds like something from a movie," Rick sad with a small. Daryl couldn't help but chuckle and agree.

"Fate wanted you two together, it seems," Rick continued. "Wish Lori and I had a story like that to tell." They fell into an awkward silence after that. Daryl didn't know what to say to Rick after he mentioned Lori. He knew that they were having marital problems, especially after Lori found out that Rick had killed Shane. He didn't want to get involved. No one did.

"If we leave first thing in the morning, we should be back by the afternoon. Then, we can start on towards Terminus." Rick pulled out the pad, though the only light they had was from the moon. "We can head there in our cars and here, where the road crosses the tracks, is where we'll meet Glenn and Maggie. We might have to go on foot from there."

"Sounds good," Daryl said absentmindedly. His mind was far off. If it were possible to head back during the dark, he would have done it. The feeling in his gut seemed to be getting worse.

* * *

The sun was barely peeking through the slit in the curtain when someone started to bang on the door. The three of the occupants shot up in the bed and the only adult there, reached for her gun and leapt from the bed thinking there was trouble.

When she opened the door, she nearly emptied the clip into the culprit. Merle Dixon stood there with a large, smug smile on his face. "Time to go, missy. We're already wastin' daylight."

"I should kill you for scaring me and the children like that."

Merle instantly covered his throat with a forearm and took a step back away from the angry woman. "Hey, you were the one who wanted to leave as early as possible."

"I never said that," she argued. Truthfully, she wished to wait a few more hours just in case Daryl returned.

"Fine, you didn't say that. But if you want to make it to Atlanta before dark, we need to leave soon."

Carol sighed, knowing he was right. "All right. Just give me a few minutes to get some things ready." She turned and shut the door in his face. Carl and Sophia were looking at her with wide eyes.

"You're leaving, mama?" Sophia crawled from the bed and threw herself into Carol's arms. "You can't go. Daryl isn't here, yet."

"I have to, honey. I promised Hershel I would. Don't you want Beth and Lori back?"

"I do, but can't you wait until Daryl goes back so he can go with?"

"That could be days, Sophia. The more we wait the more trouble they can be in. We need to get them out of there." Sophia took a step back, reluctantly, and nodded in agreement. Carol reached for her back and stuffed some clothes inside.

"I'll be back before you start to miss me." She hugged Sophia and kissed the top of her hand. "You must behave and listen to Hershel while I'm gone and remember, don't go anywhere without a weapon. That goes for you too, Carl." The boy nodded, still sleepy.

Carol reached back and opened the door. "Get some more sleep, Sophia. I'll be back soon." With another kiss, Carol slipped out of the room and went to join Merle in the living room. Hershel was already up and putting things in another bag for Merle.

"You two must be careful out there," he said. "I don't want you to end up like my daughter and if things get too bad, don't hesitate to come back." The older man reached for Carol and engulfed her in a hug,

"Daryl isn't going to be happy with you when he gets back," he whispered in her ear.

"I know, but he'll understand why I had to do this." She stepped back and smiled at the older man who returned one.

"Come on!" Merle called from the doorway. "Still wastin' daylight over here."

"I got to go." She squeezed Hershel's shoulder and followed Merle out of the building.

They walked to one of the vehicles. Merle hopped into he driver's side and Carol slid into shotgun. "I hope you know where we're going, Merle."

"Don't worry, lady. I do." He started he car and stepped on the gas, sending them screeching down the road. Carol briefly wondered if this was a good idea.

* * *

It was mid-afternoon by the time the familiar street of the town they were holding up in came into view. They had been delayed a few hours when a large herd had crossed the train tracks in front of them. Luckily, they had all been able to climb a tree before they could be spotted.

Daryl's steps quickened, along with Rick's, as the building came into view. The feeling in his gut worsened as he stormed up the stairs to the apartments. Hershel's head peeked out of one of the rooms and below his head, so did Sophia's.

"You're back!" She cried and ran to give him a hug. Carl ran past them to do the same with Rick.

"Yeah, I'm back." He ruffled Sophia's hair when she stepped away from him. The hug had shocked him, but he hadn't minded it. "Now, where's your mom?"

"Son, I think you'll want to sit down," Hershel spoke and then, looked to Rick. "You, too."

"Where's Lori?" Rick stepped forward, a look of panic on his face.

"She was taken by two men, along with Beth," the older man said sadly.

"And what does that have to do with Carol? She didn't get taken, too, did she?" Daryl felt like he was going to vomit.

"Like I said, son." Hershel ushered him inside the apartment. "You'll want to sit down."


	8. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Eight**

"Carol went  _where_ with Merle and  _you_  let her?" Daryl had been sitting for five seconds before he was leaping to his feet when Hershel told him where Carol was going and with whom she was going with.

"She told me that if you didn't show up in the morning, she and Merle would go out to start looking for Lori and Beth," Hershel exclaimed calmly. Behind the couch, Rick was pacing and staying silent as he did so. Daryl was surprised the man hadn't exploded, yet. His pregnant wife had been kidnapped after all.

"She couldn't wait a few hours? And why did she decide to take Merle, of all people?" He plopped back on the couch.

"Carol didn't want to leave Merle here where she couldn't keep an eye on him." Hershel sighed. "Daryl that is my youngest out there and the longer we waited, the less chance that she and Lori are still alive."

Rick made a noise then, and Daryl turned his head to look at him. "We're going after them," the former officer said. "Atlanta was overrun when I was there, it's probably worse now. I will not have my wife there."

"You're damn right we're going after them." Daryl stood and went for his crossbow, ready to leave right at that moment.

"Shouldn't you form a plan before leaving?" Andrea asked, hovering at the edge of the living room. Behind her, she could see Carl and Sophia sitting at the table. Their eyes were wide as they watched what was going on in the room.

The last thing Daryl wanted to do was sit down and set a plan. Carol and Merle were out there, driving to a city with thousands of walkers. "No, we don't need a plan. We leave now and hope we can catch up with Carol and Merle before they reach Atlanta."

"Good idea." Rick grabbed a set of keys and made his way to the door.

"Daryl!" Sophia's voice stopped him from running out the door. He turned to face the little girl, who had jumped from her seat to follow him.

"You're going to find my mom, right?" She asked. "And Carl's, too?" Carol was the only one on his mind at the moment, but he knew Rick would want to keep going on to Atlanta to get Lori.

"Yeah, we're going to get your mom and Carl's mom back," he answered.

"Beth, too?"

"Beth, too."

Sophia smiled brightly and gave him another hug. "Be careful and hurry back, okay?"

"Uh, yeah." He offered the girl one last smile before running out to join Rick, who, if he had to wait too long, would have left him.

* * *

Lori woke up that morning in a hospital bed with Beth practically glued to her side. In the girl's sleep, she whimpered and tear tracks were visible on her cheeks. Carefully, Lori slipped from the bed, glad that she hadn't let them force her to wear one the hospital gowns. Instead, she wore a pair of scrubs, along with Beth. Any weapons they may have had, which was small pocket knife in Lori's pocket, had been confiscated.

Someone knocked on the door and Lori jumped, surprised that their kidnappers would knock and not just burst in. With cautious steps, Lori reached for the knob and turned. A woman with dark hair, dressed in a police uniform and a young African American boy, who looked around Beth's age, in a pair of blue scrubs stood there.

"Good morning," the woman said with a serious face. "Is the girl up, too?" She stepped into the room without being invited and saw that Beth was still sleeping. "Wake her up," she ordered. "Noah will take her down to the cafeteria to eat."

"What about me?"

"You're coming with me. I want to run some tests." Her eyes roamed to her stomach. "To see if I'm right."

Lori unconsciously folded her arms over her stomach and turned to Beth. "Beth. Beth, honey. You need to get up." The blonde mumbled something and turned to the other side. "Beth!" This got her up and jerking to a sitting position. When she saw that the room wasn't familiar, she freaked out and ran to Lori.

"What's going on?" She whimpered.

"You're going to go with this young man to get something to eat," Lori soothed.

"But what about you? You're going to come with, right? You're not going to leave me. Are you?"

"This woman wants to talk with me, first. Then, we'll be back together again."

"The name's Dawn," the woman stepped forward and said. "And I'm assuming you're Beth and you are?" She looked at Lori.

"Lori," she answered.

The woman nodded and jerked her head in the direction of the young man still behind her at the door. "That's Noah," she said more to Beth, who had been asleep during his initial introduction.

"I don't want to go with him," Beth whimpered and her arms tightened around Lori almost to the point of pain.

"You have to and you will." Dawn grabbed Beth's arm and pulled her from Lori.

"Hey!" Lori protested.

"I've had enough of this. She's safe with Noah and we don't have time for her whining. Noah, take her. Lori, come with me." Lori went willingly and in the hallway, they went their separate way from Beth and Noah.

"She's going to be safe, right?

"Don't' worry, Lori. You're daughter will be safe." Lori had almost forgotten that she had told the two men who had brought them there that Beth was her daughter. She just hoped Beth remembered that, as well. She wouldn't have blamed the girl if she forgot, though. Especially considered the amount of stress they had both been under the past twelve or so hours.

* * *

"Do you think Officer Friendly and my brother are after us by now?" Merle asked as they drove on the highway, heading toward Atlanta. Carol wished she could act ignorant, but knew that the moment Daryl realized she was gone and where she was heading, he would be after them.

"What do you think?" Carol rolled her eyes.

"He's goin' to kill me," he muttered.

Carol shrugged. "Probably."

Few minutes later, they were passing a sign that told them tha Atlanta was only fifteen miles away and with the road leading into Atlanta being completely cleared, Carol knew they would be in Atlanta within fifteen to twenty minutes. She told herself to not start panicking, but her body didn't want to listen. Rolling down the window, she hoped the fresh air would calm her down a little.

"You don't have a plan when we reach Atlanta, do you?" Her panic must have been noticeable since Merle had spotted it.

"No." Between them, they had two guns and a handful of ammo. How could that possibly overtake hospital full of people. Especially police officers who looked to be well-armed.

"Well, since I don't want to die, why don't we pull off to the side for a bit and strategize." Carol narrowed her eyes at his suggestion.

"Merle Dixon, I swear, if you're tying to d-"

"I ain't goin' to do anythin'. We had a deal, remember? And I ain't goin' to try to go anywhere without Daryl." He pulled the car off to the side, just as he said he would. "Now, why don't you get that map out of the glove department. I found one of just Atlanta from the stash the Chinese kid and his girl brought back."

"Glenn's Korean."

"Whatever."

Merle opened the door and went to wait for Carol at the front of he car. Carol watched him for a moment, sill unsure if his motives for stopping were true, before opening the glove department and digging out the map. She also grabbed a pen found in there as well, so they could physically mark where they needed to go.

"We'll have to spend the night out here," Merle said, looking up at the sky.

"We still have a few hours of daylight left," Carol protested.

"Hell, I know. But I ain't riskin' gettin' caught in Atlanta when it gets dark." Merle took the map from Carol and spread it out on the hood of the car.

"That's why we would have found a place to hold up in." Carol crossed her arms and glared at his back. "Now, we'll have to cram ourselves in this car. How is that any better?" She didn't like the idea of sleeping so close to Merle. Not that she thought he would do anything, of course. It still made her a little uncomfortable. Despite being Daryl's older brother, he was still sort of a stranger to her and everyone else in their group. Rick left him on the roof and they hadn't heard from him since.

"Ah, you'll be fine. Now, stop bitchin' and let's take a look at this map." Carol stepped closer. "They could be anywhere in this God damn city!" He growled.

Carol's eyes scored the map, looking for any possible place police officers could be holed up. A police station, maybe? A jail? As her eyes roamed over the map, looking for those things, something caught her eye. It was a cross.

"They're at a hospital!" She stabbed at the cross on the map. It was one of a few.

"Hm. You might be right. Now, all we have to do is figure out which one." He turned his back on the map. "And there's a shit ton. I ain't runnin' all over Atlanta lookin' for hospitals."

"We won't have to." Carol placed her chin in her hand. "Hospitals were the first places to be bombed and I know for a fact that some of these aren't standing any more. But this one," she pointed to one that was close to the outskirts of Atlanta. "Could possibly be still standing."

"Which one is that?" Merle turned back around and squinted down at the map.

"Grady Memorial Hospital."

* * *

Daryl didn't know how far ahead Merle and Carol were down the road, but he drove like a mad man on the deserted streets. He needed to stop them before they went into Atlanta. The city was dangerous and there was no way Carol would be going into it without him.

Rick didn't seem phased by the speed. Daryl knew that if he was the one in the driver's seat, they would be going just as fast. After all, his pregnant wife was  _already_  in Atlanta. Hopefully nothing had happened to her. Or Beth. Though, Lori got on his nerves most of the time, he would never wish anything bad to happen to her and Beth was a good friend of Sophia's and it would hurt the poor girl if anything were to happen to her friend.

"I hope they have an idea where to look," Rick said, looking out the window. "Last time I was in Atlanta, I was nearly killed by a herd of walkers. I can't imagine things have gotten any better since then."

"Don't know. But if Merle's smart, he'd wait until mornin' to head into the city. Especially since they don't seem to be armed that well."

"I wonder how they got taken in the first place. I told them they needed to stay in their rooms."

"Well, it had to be something bad for it to happen. Carol wouldn't have them in the streets unless she was forced to," he defended.

"We'll find out soon. I think that's them." He pointed to a car that off to the side of the road a distance away. Two figures could be seen on the hood. One tall and buff, clearly a man and clearly Merle, and the other much smaller. Carol.

Daryl slammed on the brakes and only winced a little at the screeching noise they made. Merle and Carol jerked to face them. Merle had a smug grin on his face while Carol's eyes widened in shock. She ran around the hood to meet Daryl just as he stepped from the vehicle. Daryl pulled her into a bone crushing hug.

"Bout time you two got here!" Merle called from where he stood. "We need more people to go on this crazy ass mission." Carol stepped away from Daryl to roll her eyes at his brother. Rick, instead of retorting, joined Merle.

"Do you have any leads?"

"Actually, yes. Carol just narrowed it down to one place." Daryl and Carol walked to join the two men as well.

"Grady Memorial?" He asked.

"Yes. They were taken in a car with a cross and, it took me a while, but I figured out that it was probably from the hospital. Grady is the only one that's still standing or at least possible to be fully optional."

"All right. We have guns in the trunk, we'll leave as soon as it gets light." He walked back to his car and took a seat in the passenger's seat with the map in his hand.

The Dixons and Carol watched him walk away, understanding his need to want to leave so early. Daryl figured that the sooner they got Beth and Lori back, the sooner they could be on their way to Terminus and hopefully, a safe place to stay.

"I'll take watch. Why don't you two get some rest and relieve me in e a few," Merle offered and went to take a seat on Rick and Daryl's car. Right in front of Rick.

"I'm sorry about leaving," Carol said when they climbed into the back seat. "But I needed to do something about Beth and Lori being taken. I know that when Sophia went missing, I wanted someone to go after right away."

"I get it." Daryl wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned his head back, exhausted. "I'm just glad we caught up to you."

"Hmm, me too." She snuggled close to his side and closed her eyes. "Love you."

"Love you, too."


	9. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

Lori didn't know what to expect when Dawn led her into one of the other rooms in the hospital room. A tall bearded man, who looked to be balding at the back of his head, stood in the room in a white doctor's coat and a clipboard in his hand. For a moment, Lori thought she had gone back in time and was having her yearly doctor's visit.

"This is Doctor Steven Edwards," Dawn introduced the man. "He will be running some tests on you. Edwards, this is Lori."

The man smiled. "Nice to meet you. Now, can you hop up on the table there? These tests shouldn't take very long."

"I'll be back for her in a half hour." Without any other words, the policewoman left the room and left Lori with the strange man.

"All right. Well, there is one thing that we test all women that come in here is to see if they are pregnant or not." He turned to one of the cabinets behind him and opened one of the drawers.

"There'll be no need for that," Lori said, a little unsure if she should tell her secret. The test would have ruined it anyway. "I'm pregnant."

"Oh." Edwards blinked in surprise and wrote something down on the clipboard. Lori grew nervous. What would they do with her then? She would have been fine if they kicked her out, but she was only one woman in all of Atlanta and that would also mean that Beth would still be in the hospital on her own. The girl wouldn't be able to handle it.

"Also, I heard that your daughter is here, as well. How old is she?"

"Sixteen."

"Will she need to take a test as well?"

Lori blanched at the thought of Beth being pregnant. Especially since the girl acted like a child herself. "No. There's no need for that."

"Hmm. All right." He placed the clipboard down. "Roll up your sleeve please. I would like to take a blood sample."

Lori did as she was told. Before the Turn, blood had made her squeamish. Carl had once gotten a bloody nose from running into a door and luckily, Rick had been home at the time to take care of it. Now, after all of the bloodshed she had witnessed, it no longer bothered her and she watched as Edwards stuck a needle in a vein to fill the syringe.

She didn't know why he was taking her blood. They were all infected; surely as a doctor he would know that. Just as Dr. Jenner had. If he knew it or not, Lori kept her mouth tightly shut. After the blood was taken, it was almost as if she really were at her annual doctor's visit. Dr. Edwards took her weight, measured her and even shone a light in her eyes.

"I wish I could tell you specifics about the baby," he said after his last test. "But you don't seem to be showing yet, so I can only assume that you're about three months along."

_That sounds about right_ , Lori thought, remembering the quarry and her tryst with Shane before Rick showed up.

"Thank you, doctor," she said and hopped off the table. Dawn appeared in the doorway right when her feet touched the floor with perfect timing.

"Everything set, Edwards?" She asked.

"Yes. She's about three months along and healthy. The only thing I would suggest, though, is to eat more. You're thin as a rail and I'm sure being on the road didn't help the eating situation one bit." At the mention of food, Lori's stomach growled. She hadn't eaten since the day before.

"Come on, Lori. We can get you some food, now." Dawn didn't even wait for Lori to follow before she was walking out of the room and down the hall.

"What about B-my daughter? Where is she?"

"She's helping Noah mop some floors," she answered curtly.

_Mopping?_  Walkers were swarming in the city and this woman was concerned about a hallway being mopped? Lori had no place to question the woman's motives, of course, but it didn't stop her from thinking it was odd.

"Which reminds me, if you plan on staying here, then you have to earn your keep. I'll let you have this day off, since you just arrived, but from now on you have to pay for everything. The food you eat, the clothes you wear and the treatments you may need."

"Pay? With what?" Money was useless now. They had to know that.

"Work. Something always needs to be done around here. The harder the chore, the more you will get 'paid'."

It seemed fair. "Okay. I can do that," she said. "Just let me know what needs to be done and I'll do it." Back at the farm, Lori had done some of the cooking and laundry along with Carol, so she was no stranger to work.

"I will."

Few minutes later, Dawn led her to the cafeteria. Long tables were pushed together and dishes of food were spread across them. Some of the food looked unrecognizable, but not inedible and Lori's stomach growled again.

"Careful with how much you take," Dawn said. "My officers don't like it when someone gets too greedy."

Lori didn't know what it meant to be too greedy, so she made sure to only fill about half her plate with food. Around the room, officers in uniform and others in scrubs sat eating. Some of the officers walked around the room and it was almost as if they were in a prison, not a hospital.

She took her plate to an empty table and wished that Beth were there. At least, she wouldn't be on her own. It made her a little nervous about Beth's whereabouts and she wondered if she would be allowed to look for the girl once she was done eating. Dawn had left the cafeteria after talking with one of the officers, meaning Lori couldn't ask her.

Lori picked at her plate for a few seconds, though she was starving. The meat didn't look recognizable, but she knew it had to be edible. After all, the group had survived on the squirrels Daryl would catch. If squirrels were edible, then she figured that anything that could be caught in the city could be as well.

She surpassed a shudder when she thought of  _what_ would be found in a large city like this. With closed eyes, she took a bite and chewed quickly. However, it hadn't tasted bad. She opened her eyes and continued to eat. Whatever animal, or rodent, was on her plate wasn't that bad. Once her meal was completed, she went to drop off the empty plate.

A hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. She looked up and saw one of the officers who had brought her and Beth here. Gorman. "And how do you plan on paying for that food?" He sneered. His eyes roamed over body and Lori thought she would be sick.

"Dawn said that I could have today off," she answered and slipped her wrist from his grip.

"Well, that doesn't sound fair to me," Gorman replied and stepped closer. Lori took a step back and bumped into the wall behind her. No one in the cafeteria seemed to be giving them any attention.

"I'll make up for it tomorrow." She hated how shaky and scared her voice sounded.

"Or." One of his hands landed on her hip and trailed upwards. "You can make it up  _now._ "

"Officer Gorman, get your hands off her." Dawn's authoritive voice rang through the room and Lori had never been so relieved to hear it.

Reluctantly, the man took his hand off her and stepped back. "I was just demanded payment. I didn't want her to think that things were free around here."

Dawn stepped between the two and put her back to Lori while looking at Gorman. "She knows the rules, Gorman. Today, she's off. Tomorrow, she'll work."

Gorman looked at Lori over Dawn's shoulder and this time Lori did shudder. "Fine. I like them younger, anyways." He turned on his heel and left the cafeteria. Lori hoped she never had another run in with the man and if she did, she hoped Dawn was nearby.

Dawn turned to Lori once Gorman disappeared from view. "I think it would be wise to stay out of his way from now on."

Lori was already way ahead of her.

"Come on. Let me show you around. Noah has already shown your daughter around and she knows what will be expected of her tomorrow."

"Will we be working together?" Lori wanted to keep Beth beside her before knowing Gorman was a creep. Now, she definitely wanted to keep the girl attached to her side. After all, she was responsible for her until someone came and got them.

_If_  someone came and got them.

* * *

Daryl half expected for Rick to leave them the moment the sun came up in his hurry to get his wife. But, he decided to keep a level head about everything. At first, he had wanted to take only one vehicle to Atlanta, but if they got Beth and Lori back, there wouldn't be anymore for them in the car. So, they split up.

Daryl wanted to go with Merle, but when an uneasy look passed Carol's face, he hesitated. . However, he didn't know of a good split up. Merle couldn't go on his own, he'd probably leave the group. If he went with Rick, they would probably kill each other and it was clear Carol didn't want Daryl to go with him.

"I'll go with Merle," she said stepping forward before Daryl could say anything. Rick, so focused on getting wife back and nothing else, nodded sharply and walked to one of the vehicles. Merle's face didn't give away anything, which was surprising since Daryl knew his brother often didn't keep what he was thinking to himself.

Daryl grabbed Carol's arm to stop her before getting in the car with Merle. Pulling her a little ways, he finally asked, "Why don't you want me to go with Merle?" Fear prickled his spine. What if something happened in the few days he was gone that Carol didn't want him to know and was afraid Merle would tell him?

Carol bit at her lip nervously. "I'm afraid that if you get in a car with Merle behind the wheel, he'll just drive off with you."

"I wouldn't let him," he said firmly, slightly relieved that it wasn't something else. This he could handle.

"But, Daryl, if h-"

"I'd punch him in the throat, take control of the wheel or just jump out, even if the car was goin' fast," he listed, reassuring her that he would do whatever it took to get back to her.

Carol giggled. "You'd punch him in the throat?"

Daryl cracked a smile as a visual of him actually punching his older brother in the throat came to mind. "Yeah and then, I'd get my ass out of there quick because he'd probably kill me." At this, Carol laughed again and Daryl chuckled along. The tense mood from earlier had dissipated until...

"Are you guys coming?"

"What the fuck is takin' so long?"

Rick and Merle yelled out their open windows at the same time. Carol and Daryl instantly stopped laughing, hung their heads like chastised kids and walked to their separate vehicles. Carol climbed into the passenger's seat and looked out her window just in time to see Daryl look at her over his and Rick's car and give her a quick wave. She returned it.

"Jesus, you two are only going to be separated for a little while. Fuck," Merle grumbled and started the car. Rick was already pulling out onto the street.

"If you recall, Merle, we were separated for a few days and have only gotten to spend a few short hours with one another," Carol sniffed, lifting her nose and looking out her window.

"And if I  _recall_ , you was the one who volunteered to come with me. You could have gone with Officer Friendly and my brother."

"And risk you driving off and never coming back? No thank you."

"Why would you even care if I did? Thought you didn't like me bein' around my little brother."

"I don't. But like you said, he's your little  _brother._  Daryl loves you and he's already lost you once.  _Don't_  make it a second time." Carol crossed her arms over her chest and looked out the window once more, finished with the conversation.

"So, that's how it's goin' to be, then." He chuckled. "You're goin' to pout. Real cute. No matter, I can talk for days." Carol sighed and scrunched low in the seat, immediately regretting getting in the car with the older Dixon. Now, she didn't care if he had driven off and never come back.

They reached the outskirts of Atlanta a little bit later. Rick was out of the car, looking at the map by the time Merle pulled up to other car. "Oh, and there was this one time I was fuckin' this blonde bo-" Carol shot out of the vehicle the moment the car had come to stop. If things weren't so tense at the moment, she would have started to kiss the ground.

Instead, she opted to go join Rick and Daryl.

"The hospital is here," Rick was explaining. "Meaning, we'll have to navigate through all of this." His finger trailed through the streets leading to Grady.

"What if they have surveillance groups or somethin'?" Daryl added. "We can't just drive up to the front door and demand entry. We'll need to find a place to hole up for a bit and survey the place first."

Carol knew that Rick didn't waste time scooping out the place. All he wanted to do was burst in, get Lori and get right back out. But they had to be smart about this. If not, they could all be killed or Lori and Beth could be killed. "All right," Rick finally said. "Sounds like a good plan. Let's plan on holing up in this building right here," he pointed to a building that was a little ways down the street from the hospital, but would still have a good view. "Assuming, it's safe."

"We'll have to go when it starts getting dark, so that if there are others in the area, it'll be harder to spot our car," Carol said. Rick sighed and ran a hand down his face. This was another plan he didn't want to do, but knew that it had merit and would be smart to carry out.

"Dusk is in a few hours," he said and looked at the hunter. "Daryl, we'll need some food for later. Maybe you can go hunting?"

"I'll go with," Carol volunteered. "We could scout cars or houses we find for other things. We won't know the condition Lori and Beth will be in when we get them back and it'll be good if we're prepared for anything. Well... _most_  anything."

"You're right," Rick agreed. "But what about Merle?"

Three heads turned to Merle, who was still sitting in the driver's seat. When he saw that everyone was looking at him, he gave them all a cheeky, shit eating grin and waved. They all turned back to face one another. "If you don't kill him, I saw we can leave him here," Daryl spoke, though he looked a little uneasy about that idea. The last time Merle had been left with Rick, his brother had gotten chained to a roof.

Rick hesitated a moment and Daryl gave him a sharp look. Holding up his hands, he backpedaled a little, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Okay, okay. I promise I won't kill him. But if he tries to come at me, I'll handcuff him to the steering wheel." Carol tried hard to hide a smile behind her hand at this and Daryl, too, struggled to keep a straight face.

"All right," Daryl finally said. "We'll see you in a few."

"Got it. Don't be out too long and remember, we're leaving at dusk." In the way he said that, Daryl knew that if they were late to return, they would come back to see that Rick had already left.

Carol stepped forward and placed a hand on Rick's arm. "if we're a little late, don't leave," she said, speaking exactly what was on Daryl's mind. "Because if you find yourself stuck in a tank, again, Glenn won't be there to get you out." This earned her another smile from Rick.

"Understood." He patted her hand and she stepped back to join Daryl's side, once more. "So, don't kill Merle and don't get stuck in a tank. I think I can manage." It was obvious, he was trying to keep things light. The worry for his wife and the want to leave right at that moment to get her were evident in his blue eyes.

"Good. See you soon." Carol smiled.

Finally, she and Daryl were walking into the woods. If things weren't so crazy at the moment and they didn't have a job to do, Daryl knew he would have tried to take advantage of being alone for Carol. But for now, he would need to keep his hands to himself.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Up ahead, Glenn could see a clearing. The dense trees were thinning out more. Something was up ahead. "Do you think it's Terminus?" He asked his girlfriend, Maggie, who had walked alongside him the whole time since they had left Rick and the rest of the group.

"Could be," she responded. "If it's a depot, then the tracks will lead right to it."

"If that's what is really up there, we'll see first and then, head into the woods to check it out or something." They couldn't just walk up to the front and walk in. Especially if the place wasn't safe and they were killed. Who else would warn the rest of their family about the place, then?

Just as the trees were cleared, they saw a large building. Several different tracks lead into and it was surrounded by a chain link fence. Only a few walkers milled around and in the windows of the building, written in white paint, the word 'Terminus' was spelled out.

"There's our destination," Maggie sighed in relief.

"I don't see anyone, though. Besides walkers." Glenn shielded his eyes from the sun to get a better view. "Let's head into the woods. It looks like they may come out somewhere near the back." He pointed to where he saw the tops of trees.

"Good idea." Maggie smiled and kissed Glenn on the cheek before heading toward the trees.

"Sometimes I have those, you know!" He called after her and followed.

* * *

"Some of us should have gone with," Andrea said as she paced the small apartment. Seven people were stuffed into the small space and Michonne had opened a window earlier to get some air circulating in the room, to everyone's relief.

"I agree," T-Dog responded from where he sat on the couch by Hershel. "I don't think Rick and Daryl were thinking very rationally, honestly. If they're going to Atlanta, they're going to need more backup than just the four of them. And who knows how dependable Merle will be with a weapon with having only one hand."

"If anyone is capable of having a gun with _no_ hands, it would be Merle," Andrea said wryly and leaned against the top of the couch, her arms crossed over her chest.

"It's a little late to be thinking about this, now, isn't? it?" Michonne asked from where she stood by the window. One eyebrow raised.

"I suppose. But we had just gotten back from looking for Terminus and were exhausted. Daryl and Rick have to be running on pure adrenaline," T-Dog added. "I'm getting tired just thinking about what they'll have to deal with in Atlanta." He leaned his head on the back of the couch and closed his eyes.

"And you're not worried about them?" Andrea looked down at him.

"Not really. The four of them are more than capable and if things get too rough, they'll turn around and head back until things settled down." He turned and clapped Hershel on the shoulder. "And you don't have to worry, old man," he said teasingly. "They'll get your daughter back. Especially if she's with Lori. There isn't anything in the world that will stop Rick from getting his wife back."

* * *

Daryl and Carol trekked quietly through the woods. Carol knew that Daryl was hunting and didn't say anything, knowing that any noise could scare any game away. Not talking to Daryl was okay. It wasn't like their relationship was the kind where every minute had to be filled with some form of chatter. They knew each other so well, sometimes words weren't needed.

Daryl whistled lowly and jerked his head to the right. Carol stopped and gasped when she saw a doe about a hundred feet away. Daryl walked silently up to her, pressing his chest into her shoulder. "I ain't goin' to kill her," he whispered into Carol's ear. "She's too big for just the four of us and I ain't goin' to waste meat."

Carol was glad that the deer wouldn't be killed, though she did enjoy venison. The doe looked peaceful standing there, ears twitching as it looked in the opposite direction of where they stood.

"Now, if you see any squirrel or rabbit," Daryl continued to whisper. "I'll get them." He took a step back and they watched the doe for a few more minutes before they started to walk once more. They walked along in silence for a little longer before Daryl, without a word, lifted his bow and let a bolt fly. Carol whipped her head to see what he had gotten and saw that it was a nice fat rabbit.

"That should be good for now," he said, walking up to the dead animal to pull the bolt from its body. Carol, though used to gore and guts, turned from the sight as blood started to trickle down the rabbit's white fur.

"Gettin' squeamish on me, already?" Daryl asked and kissed her on the cheek before tying the dead rabbit on his belt. Thankfully, it was on the other side of the his body. The side _away_ from her.

"No," she quipped. "I just felt sorry for poor Thumper!"

"Thumper?"

"You know, from _Bambi?_ "

Daryl gave her a look that said he still didn't know what the hell she was talking about. Carol rolled her eyes. "It was one of Sophia's favorite movies when she was little. Honestly, I'm surprised she hasn't had a fit every time you've killed a deer."

"The girl's smart. Without Bambi, everyone would starve."

"That she is," Carols aid proudly. For being almost thirteen, Sophia was mature for her age and especially now, with the world ended and walkers milling around, Carol was grateful for that.

They continued to walk through the woods. This time their goal was to see if they came across any houses or cabins to loot from. Though Carol didn't know what exactly would be out in the middle of the woods. At least she got some alone time with Daryl. The next few days were probably going to be crazy. Especially if they got Lori and Beth back and headed straight for Terminus.

A growl coming from behind them had Daryl and Carol whipping around. Carol went for her knife and Daryl already had his bow in her hand. Instead of a walker, though, it was a dog. Carol looked at Daryl, eyebrow raised remembering the first time this had happened to them. "Should I find you a long stick?" She asked, not even bothering to keep her voice down.

"Maybe this time, you can be the one to save me." He smirked. The dog was probably rabid and they were joking around. Carol knew that if it tried to attack them, Daryl would put a bolt through its eyes, so there really was no cause to panic.

"Oh, all right." Carol rolled her eyes playfully and looked around for a long stick to wield. However, a loud crashing through the woods sent the dog running and a walker appeared in its place. It's original goal had been the dog, but when it saw Daryl and Carol standing there, he went for them. Daryl brought his bow up, but Carol stopped him.

"I got it." Pushing down her nerves, Carol approached the walker with her knife and before it could lunge at her, she stabbed it through the eye. It fell to the forest floor with a thump. Carol turned to Daryl. "I just saved you. So, where's my kiss?"

* * *

Lori didn't return to their hospital room until it was almost dark. Dawn had lead her to the laundry room and had her fold a few baskets of clothes. Lori wondered if it was because Dawn wanted to appease Gorman if they were to meet again that day. Not that Lori minded. Folding the towels and scrubs kept her hands and mind busy.

"When you're finished with that last basked, you can head back to your room." Dawn appeared in the doorway.

Lori looked at the woman over her shoulder. "I don't know my way back."

"That'll be remedied soon enough."

 _No, it won't_ Lori turned back to her work and thought. _I won't be hear long enough to know my way around._ In her heart, she knew that Rick was coming to get her and very near by.

"How is my daughter?" Lori asked, still sensing Dawn behind her as she finished folding. She hadn't seen Beth since that morning and was worried about the girl.

"Her and Noah mopped most of the halls on the level and earned themselves some supper." Lori wondered if she had earned supper as well. She didn't want to ask, though, just in case she hadn't. Standing, she winced as her back protested from being bent over for a long period of time.

"Finished?" Dawn asked.

"Yes. Well, with everything you told me to do anyways." There were still other baskets full of clothes waiting to be folded. The washer and dryers in the room didn't look like they were used much and Lori wondered if they did all the washing by hand. It reminded her of when they had been back on the farm.

"Good. Follow me." Lori wondered if it every got exhausting to be so rigid all of the time. The world had ended. There was no need for police officers, anymore. Though, Rick was the leader of the group and a former police officer, he didn't wave the badge around.

Lori followed Dawn through numerous hallways and they passed many other people in scrubs just like her. None of them met her eye and some of them looked down right miserable. Besides having to work for their food and Gorman, Lori didn't see anything wrong with the hospital. That was, until screaming down the hall caught everyone's attention.

Two officers were dragging a deranged woman into another room. Her hair was wild and eyes even wilder. Another officer ran up to Dawn. "Caught her trying to leave, again. This time, we'll put her in restraints."

Dawn looked at Lori over her shoulder for a brief second, face unreadable. "Good," she turned back to the other woman in front of her. "I'll be checking up on her later."

"We'll have her subdued by then." The female officer turned from Dawn and entered the room they dragged the woman into. Panic settled into Lori's chest. Did that mean that no one was allowed to leave? If they tried, they would be brought back here to be tied up?

If that was the case, what would happen if someone tried to break someone out?

* * *

Daryl and Carol search for a cabin or a house came up nothing. They could have searched deeper into the woods but knew that Rick had probably paced a hole in the road already waiting for them. At least, they got something quick to cook before they made it to Atlanta. Carol knew they would be needed all the energy and strength they had to get into the overrun capital.

"When we get to Atlanta, stick close to me, you hear?"

"I was just about to say the same thing to you," Carol replied and nudged him in the ribs.

"I'm serious, Carol. When I came back to the apartments to find you gone, I-I...it scared the shit out of me, okay? I thought something had happened to you while I was gone and I can't have that happen again. So, stay close. It ain't because I don't think you can handle yourself. I definitely know you can. I just..."

Carol stopped and placed a hand on his chest. "I get it, Daryl, and I'll stay close. Promise."

"Good."

" _But_ if you start treating me like I can't take care of myself, then I may just have to leave you." She winked, letting him know that she was only kidding...about the leaving part. He knew that if he started to baby her, she would not be too happy with him.

"So, how much do you want to bet that Rick will already been in the car, waiting, when we get back?" Carol asked once they started moving once more.

"He'd probably insist we eat the rabbit raw to save time," Daryl chuckled and Carol made a face at that.

"I'd rather not eat, then."

"If I was really hungry, I'd eat it raw."

Carol crinkled her nose and looked up at him in disgust. "I hope you'd brush your teeth afterwards. Especially if you plan on kissing me."

"Naw. I just won't tell you." He winked, knowing it would rile her up.

"You're so gross, Daryl!" She cried and shoved him a little. Daryl chuckled and shrugged.

Afterwards, they continued walking. Five minutes later, they broke through the trees and saw the highway. Merle was standing against one of the vehicles, arms crossed over his chest and mind somewhere else. Rick stood in front of his car, bent over the nap. In his mouth, he had a sharpie and Daryl figured he had been marking the route they would be taking in Atlanta, which was very smart.

"Why don't you get started on a fire and I'll skin this," Daryl leaned close to Carol and said. The scene they had happened upon had been quiet. Too quiet. Daryl had expected arguing and shouting when he got back. Pleasantly surprised he was to find that his brother had actually kept to himself or at least didn't take any of the bait Merle had thrown his way.

Rick finally looked up as Daryl approached. Taking the sharpie out of his mouth, he spoke, "I've mapped out a route for us to take once we're ready to go." He followed the thick black line with his finger. Daryl examined the map and saw no problems with Rick's plan. It seemed to avoid the once heavily populated areas of Atlanta and kept them at the outskirts until they reached the hospital.

Daryl placed the rabbit on the hood of the car and started to skin. Rick didn't even bat an eye. "Have you given any thought of what we'll do once we make it to the hospital?" He asked. "The men had guns and we'll be outnumbered." There was no way he was going to have Carol go into a situation where they were outnumbered and could easily be picked off.

"Honestly, I was hoping that maybe we could negotiate. What would those people want with a pregnant woman and a teenager?"

Daryl shrugged, eyes never leaving the animal in front of him. "Don't know. I mean, they're hold up in a hospital. Maybe they want to help people. Those men probably saw Lori and Beth and thought they were on their own."

"Whatever they are, I'm getting my wife back." Rick rolled up the map and finally, looked at gutted animal only inches from him and made a face. "How long do you think that will take to cook?"

"If Carol gets a good fire going, I'd say maybe in a hour or so."

"All right. Anything I can do?"

"Don't think so." Rick moved to walk away, but Daryl stopped him. Lowering his voice, he glanced at Merle before looking back at Rick. "Thanks for not killin' my brother while we were gone."

"It was like he wasn't even here," Rick said. "He kept to his car and didn't say a word. I was surprised." Daryl was surprised at hearing that, as well. Also, maybe even a little...proud. He'd never mention that, though.

Once the animal was skinned and gutted, he brought it over to Carol, who had a decent fire going and together, they started to prepare the meal. Rick dozed off in his car and Merle was sitting on the hood of his, watching the tree line. A gun rested by his hand. Rick had deemed him trustworthy for one...at the moment.

An hour later, the meat was cooked and they were eating it as they drove to Atlanta.


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

It took Glenn and Maggie awhile and some dodging of bushes and trees before they could see the chain link fence that surrounded Terminus. The sun was getting lower in the sky and they hoped to see something useful, as they spied, that would let them know what kind of place Terminus was. They were itching to get back to the rest of their group and they hoped this would be a place they would be able to settle in. They desperately needed it.

Maggie's fingers linked through the chains and Glenn did the same to her right. From their vantage point, they saw that they were slightly above the depot and were also looking at the back of it. Train cars littered the yard, but there were no people.

"Maybe the train cars are where they sleep," Glenn suggested in a whisper, though they were several yards away. "And they're all in them, right now." The excuse sounded weak, even to him.

"Why sleep in the cars when there's perfectly good buildings?" Maggie countered.

Things were silent for a few moments as they scanned the ground once more, hoping to see any kinds of life. Even walkers would have been a welcomed sight, letting them know if the place was overrun.

"There!" Glenn spoke loudly and somewhat excitedly. "People." Maggie followed the line of Glenn's pointed finger and saw a line of five people walking into one of the cars. From where they were, they couldn't see the expressions on their faces, but something didn't sit well with Maggie.

"Something didn't seem right," Maggie voiced her opinion and never took her eyes off the small line of people until they disappeared into the train car. From the angle, she didn't know if they closed the door to the car themselves or if someone had shut it for them. Though, it seemed like such a small thing to want to see it, but it made a world of difference. She needed to know if those people were residents of Terminus or...prisoners.

"Let's keep watching, then," Glenn said, taking what Maggie said seriously. If she didn't think something was right, then they would stay and see if they could find out more.

Seconds after he said that, a scream wretched the air and two pairs of eyes flew to another train car where it looked like a woman was being dragged out by two men. She kicked and screamed, but the grip on her was too tight. Glenn felt sick, knowing what those two men were going to do to her.

A woman in a long skirt walked out of one of the buildings at the noise and the two men stopped in front of her with the struggling woman. The captive woman stood up straight and spit right in the other woman's face, who slapped her hard in the face for the action. Then, with a jerk of her head, the woman was being dragged inside. Glenn and Maggie wished they knew what had been said, but they got all the information they needed in just the few minutes of interaction.

Terminus was not a place they wanted their family to be.

"Let's get out of here," Maggie whispered.

"You got it."

The sound of a safety being off seemed to echo through the trees and the couple froze. "Put her hands up," a male voice spoke from behind them. "And turn around slowly."

* * *

"Lori!" Beth rushed into her arms the moment Lori walked through the door of the room they were to share. Noah was leaning against the wall by the window and raised on eyebrow at the two them.

"You call your mom by her first name?"

Lori glared at Beth, upset that the girl had forgotten already the roles they were supposed to be playing while they were being held captive. "Sometimes, _my daughter_ , thinks she can call me by my first name since she's sixteen, now."

Beth looked regretful. "Sorry, _mom_."

"Better." Lori patted Beth's blonde head and stepped from the embrace. "So, what did you two do today?"

"The usual," Noah answered while Beth slumped to the bed and said, "Work." At the same time.

"What kind of work?"

"We mopped every hallway on this floor," Beth answered and flopped back on the mattress. "I have blisters on my hands." She held them up and sure enough, there were blisters on the palms of her hands. Lori felt sorry for the girl, her hands were a little red as well from laundry. They were not used to work of this magnitude. Back with the group, they split up the work and there wasn't as many people as there were at the hospital.

"Then, we washed all of the windows on this floor, as well," Noah added. His hands looked work roughened and calloused. Lori wondered how long he had been there and how much had he actually done over a period of time.

"I did laundry." Lori joined Beth on the bed. All she wanted to do was sleep, now. Tomorrow would be a early day for them. Dawn didn't look like the type that would allow anyone to sleep in. Especially when there was work to be done.

Noah pushed off the wall, crossed the room and shut the door. Surprising both of them. Beth sat up. "What's going on?" She asked, curiously.

Noah pulled up the only chair in the room and sat close to them. "I know you two don't belong here," he said in a low voice. "We need to get you out."

"You know how to get out of here?" Beth asked, excitedly.

"I have an idea. But I could never do it for myself, though. I need help."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Lori asked with skepticism. They had only met the young man that morning and he could be working as an agent for Dawn. The woman had seemed awfully fond of him.

"You don't, but I want to get out of here just as much as you. When I first came here, it was only about a month after the outbreak. They killed my dad and kept me here."

"They killed your dad?" Lori asked.

"He was the stronger one of the two of us. My leg was messed up bad when they found us. Gorman and his men killed my dad and brought me here. We were on our way to my mom and brothers in Virginia."

"Why were you in Georgia, then?" Beth asked.

"I was going to go to school in Atlanta," he explained. "And my uncle lived here. My dad and I decided to visit for a week to check out the school and to spend time with my uncle. Things went bad before we could return home. My uncle died within the first month and it was just me and my dad." He sighed and looked away. "Now it's just me."

"Lo- _Mom_ , we have to help him get back to his family!" Beth turned wide, pleading eyes on Lori.

"Oh, honey." If Noah helped them get out of the hospital, it would be the least they could for him. But if Rick decided that Terminus was a good place to stay, then he wouldn't want to go all the way to Virginia. Especially for one kid.

"It's okay," Noah stepped in. "I'll be fine on my own. We just need to get out of here, first."

"Let us hear your plan, then." Lori placed a hand on his knee. "And if you don't want to go to Virginia, then you will always be welcomed with us."

* * *

Atlanta looked completely different since the last time Carol had been in it. Of course, that had been way before the dead started walking around. Buildings were blown apart, rubble lined the streets, along with bodies that were dead _dead_. Carol rode with Merle while Daryl and Rick drove in the car up ahead. She actually didn't mind the company, especially since he hadn't said much since they had started on their way to Atlanta.

"There's the hospital," he said and pointed at something through the windshield. Carol could only barely make out the hospital and was shocked to see some of the windows were lit. Not bright like an electric light, but as if there were candles in the rooms. It made it more obvious that there were people in the hospital.

Rick and Daryl had seen it, too and they slowed. Since they had entered Atlanta, they had turned off their headlights and used only the light of the moon to guide their way. Surprisingly, it had seem fairly easy.

"That must be the building Officer Friendly wants to hold up in," Merle said when he followed Rick down a street he had just turned down. Carol couldn't make out what the building was in the dark, but she trusted Rick's judgment to chose a good one that would give them a good view of Grady.

They parked in front of the building and the four of them quietly closed the doors of their cars. They didn't want to draw any unwanted attention from any walkers that may have been loitering around. Daryl went up to a side door of the building and began to jimmy the lock while Rick, Merle and Carol stood guard behind him.

For some reason, Carol got a sink feeling in her gut.

There was a clang behind them when Daryl finally got the door to open. Merle and Rick went in first, guns raised and Daryl went in next with Carol. With that first step inside the building, Carol knew why she had started to feel sick. She knew where they were. It was the woman's shelter she had taken Sophia all those years ago.

Unbidden a sob escaped her mouth. Fortunately, Daryl had been the only one close enough to hear. "You okay?" His voice was so soft and caring that tears started to blur Carol's vision.

"I'm fine." Quickly, she wiped at her eyes and stepped past Daryl. "Rick," she said, getting the other man's attention.

"Yeah, Carol?"

"I know where we are. I can show you a good place to rest for the night." In the dim light from the flashlight in his hand, Carol could see the curious look Rick was giving her. She knew Daryl and Merle were most-likely mirroring the look.

Rick handed Carol the flashlight and she lead them through the building. It had been years since she had been here, but she still remembered the layout like she had just been in there yesterday. During her marriage, it had been the one safe place she and Sophia had been able to sleep.

 _If only I had been brave enough to stay here and be free of Ed..._ She shook the thoughts away. Ed was gone forever. Sophia was safe back at the apartments and Daryl was back in her life. There should be no reason for her to waste her thoughts on that time back then.

Finally, she brought them to the part of the building that has the bedrooms where they housed the mothers and children. Carol opened one door to reveal bunk beds. Most of the rooms had them. "I don't know if you want all four of us in the same room, Rick." She turned to the man behind her. "If not, there is a similar room next door."

"Hmm." He thought for a moment. "If we barricade the door we just came through, we won't have to keep watch. We can separate into two rooms, if you want." His face fell, then. "That probably means I'm sharing with Merle...right?"

Merle came up behind him, a wide smile on his face. "And you're just in luck, Officer Friendly. I snore!"

It was weird to have a light moment in a place that had brought back terrible memories for Carol, but she found herself laughing softly at Merle's antics. Rick sighed and walked to the next room with slumped shoulders.

"Oh, and I got dibs on the top bunk," Merle called to Rick as he followed him to the other room. The smile didn't leave Carol's face and Daryl shut the door behind them. However, he wasn't smiling.

"What?" She asked and turned her back on him to put her pack on the bottom bunk.

"You know what, Carol. What is this place to you? You looked pretty damn upset earlier." He walked up to her and gently grabbed her arm to turn her to face him.

"It's a shelter for battered women," Carol finally said with a sigh and didn't look up at Daryl. "Sophia and I spent one night here before I went running back to Ed." She turned from him in disgust. She had been so damn pathetic back then...

"Stop," Daryl's voice was soft. "You're the strongest person I know."

Carol snorted and wiped the tears away before facing him. "Maybe now and maybe when we were kids... But with him, I was weak. You...You wouldn't have liked me back then, Daryl. I was a shadow of a person and I could have left him, but I didn't."

"Stop," he said again and this time, he cupped her cheek. "You were strong then, too. You survived him, Carol. You kept Sophia safe from him and you came out on top. That's strength, not weakness." He gathered her close and kissed her temple. "I would have loved you back then just as much as I do now and just as much as I did when we were kids."

Carol let herself cry, then. Loud sobs with large tears rolling down her cheeks. Through it all, Daryl held her close and comforted her with soft words and even softer touches. Her time at the shelter and her marriage with Ed hadn't crossed her mind much since Ed had been killed, but now everything was brought to the forefront and Carol let herself feel.


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

_**August 1982** _

_"Found you!" Carol giggled, looking up at him in of the trees that surrounded Caryltopia. They had been playing an epic game of hide-and-seek and Carol was glad that it hadn't taken her very long to find Daryl this time. He always won when it came to the game and it drove her crazy._

_"I let you find me," Daryl said and climbed down carefully from the branch he had been sitting on._

_Carol figured that was probably true, but she would never admit it aloud. "No, you didn't, Daryl Dixon. I'm just getting better at finding you." She crossed her arms and glared at her best friend._

_"Pfft." He waved her off, then turned to face the trunk of a tree and placed an arm over his eyes. "You ready to hide?" His voice was muffled, but Carol had heard him clearly._

_"Yep! This time, you won't find me!"_

_Daryl didn't respond, instead he started counting. "One...two...three..."_

_Carol took off running into the woods. Since they had both been lost in the woods, they made sure that they had markers scattered throughout the trees so they wouldn't lose their way again. Carol found a perfect hiding spot behind a bush and settled into a crouch to await being found._

_Two minutes later..._

_"Found you."_

_The voice had come from behind Carol and she had nearly jumped from her skin. She looked over her shoulder to see Daryl smirking down at her. "You cheated!" She frowned. "There's no way you could have found me that fast."_

_"Anyone could find you, with the trail you made," he said, smugly, knowing that wasn't true. He just liked to subtly brag about his ability to track._

_"You should teach me," she said and stood. "That way we could be even when we play this game."_

_"Hmph. I don't know if you have what it takes."_

_"You're just scared I'll be better than you!" Carol shot back._

_Daryl just smiled, loving it when he could rile her up. "All right. I'll teach you. Okay," he started and crouched low to the ground. "The first thing you have to do is..."_

_**September 1982** _

_Daryl hadn't shown up at her house that evening like he did most days and Carol grew worried. Had his dad come home and caught Daryl? Could he be hurt? Without a second thought and without telling her parents, who had just gotten home, Carol took off in the direction of Daryl's house. She knew the way by heart._

_When she got there, the property was eerily quiet. There was no car in the driveway, meaning that Daryl's father wasn't home and for the first time in their friendship, Carol went to the front door and knocked._

_No one answered._

_Next, she tried Daryl's window and got the same thing. Carol started to panic. Where was he? If he had been on his way to her house, she would have passed him and if he had to do something else to do today, he would have found a way to tell her._

_Their tree!_

_Suddenly, she remembered their spot in the back of his property and went running. What she found broke her heart. Mr. Snuggles sat in one of the branches. Daryl would never give him back unless he was leaving._

_Carol took the stuffed bunny from the tree and buried her face into it. It smelled like Daryl. Tears spilled down her cheeks at the loss of her best friend. "Don't worry, Daryl. I've gotten better at hide-and-seek," she said to the air. "And I'll find you. Someday."_

* * *

Daryl woke up and found that he had practically wrapped himself around Carol in the bottom bunk. The night before, she had laid there crying as Daryl held her. He didn't say anything, but knew that it had been something that Carol needed to get out and it made Daryl want to kill Ed all over again for making his girl to feel this way.

There was a knock on the door and this woke Carol up. She turned in his arms and smiled. "Morning," she mumbled and kissed him on the nose. Her eyes were still slightly swollen from her tears, but she looked much better than she had last night as they had scoped the place out.

"Mornin', sweetheart," he kissed her temple and climbed over her so he could answer the bed. It was either Rick or Merle.

When he opened the door, he saw that it was Rick. There were bags under his eyes. "It's time to get moving. Merle and I found some stuff for breakfast." He turned to walk away, but stopped. "Oh, and by the way Daryl, I hate your brother."

Daryl couldn't help but laugh as he watched the man walk away. Served him right for trying to keep Merle's whereabouts away from Daryl at the farm. Though, Daryl supposed he couldn't completely blame him. Rick and Shane hadn't known how he would have reacted if he found out where Merle was.

"What's so funny?" Carol walked up behind him to wrap her arms around his waist and place her cheek on his back.

"Merle's an ass and Rick didn't sleep too well last night." He turned in her arms to wrap his arms around her, as well. Daryl gave her an odd look when he saw that Carol was scrunching up her face.

"What are you doin'?"

"I'm trying to make myself feel sorry for Rick." Her face relaxed. "But I can't. I had to be in the same car as your brother for a few hours. I know his pain, but still don't feel sorry for him." She laughed softly.

"Come on." Daryl reluctantly stepped out of their embrace. "Let's get our shit and go before Rick comes back."

* * *

The four of them rendezvoused in the lobby of the shelter and Carol revealed that she knew where the stairs where and they followed her up them. Daryl stayed close, nearly glued to Carol's back, and made sure no walker surprised them on their way up.

They wanted to go up a few floors so that they could get a better view of Grady. Their plan wasn't extremely clear, yet but hopefully after Rick saw the layout, he would have a better idea of what to do.

Rick finally found a suitable room for them to whole up in that had a perfect view of Grady. However, no movement could be seen outside of the hospital and from the distance, they couldn't see through the windows. It was almost as if the place was abandoned. But they knew that wasn't the case.

"We have no idea how they get in and out," Rick observed. "It looks like the front doors are boarded up."

"Maybe they come and go from the Emergency Room exit," Carol suggested. "That's on the other side of the hospital."

"If that's the case, then we won't be able to sneak in. They'd have it heavily guarded."

They were silent for a moment and Carol wondered if Rick regretted not having more people there with them. It would have been so much easier. Carol knew she should have brought someone else along with Merle, but someone had to stay behind to keep track of Sophia and Carl. Randall had been injured and Carol hadn't trusted him yet to keep an eye on her daughter.

"Maybe someone can act as an agent inside," the words came out of Carol's mouth the moment they entered her brain.

"Absolutely fuckin' not!" Daryl exploded behind them. They all turned to face him.

"And why not?" Carol asked. "I don't think it's a bad plan."

"It's not," Rick added. "Actually, at the moment, it's the best one we have."

"And who do you think is the one who'll be goin' inside?" Daryl at each of them, but his stare lingered more on Carol. While Daryl was looking at Carol, Merle and RIck did the same. Merle was smirking.

"I would, of course," she answered. "I doubt they would let any of you in."

"That's why I said absolutely not! You ain't leavin' my sight again! The last time you did, I came back to see that you had run off with Merle on some fool mission."

Carol stabbed her fingers into his chest, face growing red with anger. "You can't tell me what to do, Daryl Dixon! I am my own woman and I went off on this 'fool' mission to help save my friends." She turned fiercely away from him and looked at Rick. "I'm willing to do it, Rick."

"Um." His gaze shifted between Carol and a seething Daryl. "I don't know..."

"You said before that it was a good plan, the best we had so far. I want to do it."

This time Rick's eyes remained on Carol, completely ignoring Daryl. "Okay, then. We don't have much time to think of a lengthy plan. You just need to get in there, locate Lori and Beth and then. some how find your way out. We'll remain by the exit and cover you when you do escape."

"That's it? That's the damn plan. I counted at least ten ways she could get her ass killed!"

Carol was about to turn around and give Daryl a piece of her mind, again, when the sound of gunshots had them all freezing. "They're coming from the hospital," Rick exclaimed, face practically smashed against the window.

"I say we get the fuck down there to see what's goin' on." Merle spoke for the first time since they had made it up the stairs. Everyone seemed to like that idea and they all took off toward the stairs. Rick was in the lead, fear for his wife evident on his face.

Once they reached the streets, they saw that the gunshots had gained the attention of a few walkers. Merle and Daryl stayed behind to take care of them while Carol raced after Rick, who hadn't even paused at the sight of the walkers. Carol knew he only had one person on his mind and that was his wife.

Rick turned a corner sharply and Carol followed to only barrel straight into a walker. She screamed and immediately went for the knife at her belt. Luckily, she was much faster than the undead man and was able to stab it in the head before it bit her. Fortunately, Daryl had witnessed what had happened. There was no telling what he would have done to Rick. She wished she could call out to Rick, but that would give them even more unwanted attention.

When Rick stopped to kill a walker that was directly in his path, Carol was able to catch up to him a little. He turned another corner and Carol was near enough to hear an 'oomph' from Rick and a scream.

Her pace quickened, she turned the corner and saw Rick on the ground with...Lori on top of him. Beth stood a few feet away looking frightened and an African American young man, that looked to be around the same age of Beth, stood beside her. Lori looked up from Rick to see Carol standing there, trying to catch her breath.

"Hi, Carol."


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

Instead of leading them inside Terminus, the man who had snuck up on Glenn and Maggie took them to a tiny shack several yards away from the fences. In his hand, the gun remained unwavering, on his head sat a ball cap (reminiscent of the one Glenn used to wear) and at his belt, a walkie talkie.

"So, you were checking out my home, I see." The man smiled with no warmth and motioned for the couple to sit on the ground of the dirty shack. "My name is Martin, by the way."

Glenn and Maggie didn't respond. They were both frightened, not really for themselves, but for the other. However, they made sure not to show it. Martin would surely use it against them.

"Unfortunately, you won't be calling Terminus your home," Martin continued, unbothered by his silent companions. "You'll stay there, of course. But for a very brief time." It was no secret what that meant.

Glenn struggled with his bonds. He couldn't allow Maggie to be killed, not even if it meant he had to sacrifice himself to do so. Martin watched his struggle with amusement. "There's no use trying to get free. You aren't the first people I've tied up and you won't be the last." That didn't stop Glenn, but Maggie nudged him with her shoulder and silently begged him to stop.

He did so with a slump to his shoulders. This was it. They were accepting their fate. Rick and the rest of their group were back at the apartments and wouldn't know of their fate for a few more days. At least, they wouldn't get caught by the people of Terminus.

Martin opened his mouth to speak when the walkie talkie on his hip started to go off with a staticy voice. He unclipped it and pressed down the talk button. "Give me one second." He stood up from the only chair and made his way to the door. "I'm going to be right outside. I wouldn't try anything because I won't hesitate to shoot you." He hoped the door and slipped out.

The door was the only exit in the shack, besides a tiny window that was above their heads and way too small for either one to fit through. Even if they had managed to get free, the only thing they could have used as a weapon was the chair that Martin had abandoned. They were still out of luck.

Commotion outside had them looking at the door. Shouts from Martin and other unknown voices had them knee walking to the door, which was awkward with their hands tied behind their backs. Then. gunshots had them stopping completely.

"What's going on out there?" Glenn asked Maggie, even though he knew she had no idea what was happening either.

Just then. the door burst open.

"Well, what do we have here?"

* * *

The moment Lori got to her feet, Carol latched herself into her friend's arms, glad that she seemed to be all right. "I'm so sorry," she whispered into Lori's neck.

Lori pulled away, an odd expression on her face. "What are you sorry for? It wasn't your fault we were taken. You were trying to keep us safe."

"But we should have stayed put. We were safe where we were." Carol hung her head. That was when Daryl and Merle came running around the corner. It was almost comical in the way they had to skid to a stop before they crashed into everyone. Daryl immediately went to Carol.

"You okay?"

"Fine," Carol answered, still a little angry from their argument earlier.

"Uh, I'm sorry to break up the happy reunion." The young man by Beth stepped forward. "But were being chased by police officers. _Armed_ police officers and I'd rather not go back to that hospital." This snapped every into motion. Rick took his wife's hand and they were off running the streets of Atlanta once more.

"That's Noah," Lori introduced after they had driven several miles away from Atlanta and Grady Memorial. It was getting close to sunset and they decided to make camp on the side of the road. "He helped get us out of Grady."

Rick turned the young man and held out his hand to shake Noah's. "Thank you. I owe you one."

"I couldn't have gotten out without your wife's help, Rick." Noah looked a little uneasy with the attention. Beth, who was sitting next to him, hadn't stopped looking at him admiringly once since they had gotten out of the vehicles to sit around a fire.

"How did you get out?" Carol asked. She was sitting between Daryl and Lori on the other side of the fire. Merle was sitting on the hood of one of the cars acting as if he wasn't interesting in the conversations around the fire, but Carol could tell he was listening.

"Well, it was nothing spectacular," Noah admitted. "There's an old elevator shaft in one of the halls where they dumped the dead." He shuddered. "I knew there was a way out down there, but also knew there were walkers, too. I grabbed two guns and the ladies grabbed a bunch of sheets. We tied them together and-" Merle snorted a laugh.

Noah looked at him. "I know. It sounds like something out of a bad movie. Anyways, we tied them together and made our way down the shaft. Once down there, Beth held a flashlight while Lori and I navigated our way through, killing a few walkers.

"When we made it out to the daylight, there were walkers in the yard and we had no choice but to shoot at them more. This gained the attention of the officers on duty. We were barely able to make it out of there."

The campfire was silent.

Noah smiled sheepishly. "Told you it was nothing spectacular."

"I don't care how you guys got out of there, I'm just glad you got out." Rick wrapped an arm around Lori and held her close. The look on the woman's face was of pure happiness. Weeks of barely getting a look from her husband had taken its toll on her and it looked like things would change for now.

"Where are you from, Noah?" Carol asked.

"Virginia," he answered. "My dad and I were visiting Atlanta when...everything started." A look passed between him and Lori.

"Rick, he would like to get back to his family in Virginia. I...I told him that I wasn't sure if that was possible, since it's so far."

Rick thought for a moment. "Glenn and Maggie are scouting out Terminus. If it doesn't pan out and we can get enough supplies gathered, we could make the trip out there. It's a far journey, but it's the least I could do."

Noah beamed. "Thank you!"

Rick held up a hand. "Now, this is only if Terminus isn't a good place for my people. If it is, then you are more than welcome to stay on with us."

"Thank you," this time it was said with a bit less excitement.

"I think it's time to get some rest," Rick announced and stood. "I'll take first watch with Merle and-"

Merle snorted and hopped from the hood. "You're willingly goin' on watch with me, Officer Friendly? Thought you hated my guts."

Rick just shrugged. "Guess you're growing on me. So, we'll take first watch and Carol and Daryl will take second. Lori, Noah and Beth deserve to get some rest. Things couldn't have been that easy in the hospital." No one had gone into detail about what they had gone through those few days at Grady. They would explain it another day. Now, they needed to rest and get back to the rest of the group. They had been separated long enough.

* * *

"They're back!" Sophia cried excitedly when she saw the two cars drive up to the apartment buildings. Carl rushed into the room, the sheriff's hat nearly flying of his head and joined Sophia at the window.

"Is my mom with them?"

"Yes! See!" Sophia pointed out the window and watched as Rick opened the door for his wife, who beamed up at him happily. "And there's my mom." They watched as Carol, Daryl and Merle climbed out of the other vehicle.

"Come on. Let's go meet them." Carl grabbed her hand and the two of them were off like a shot down the hall to the exit. The sounds of their running feet had the rest of the group coming out of their rooms to follow them.

"They're back?" Hershel asked.

"Yep!" Sophia said over her shoulder. "Beth, too!" She didn't think she had ever seen the old man move so fast.

They all burst through the outside door. Sophia went right for Carol, Carl to his mother and Hershel to Beth. They had all been so lucky that nothing bad had happened to any of them while they were away. They could have so easily lost one of their group.

"Come on, let's get inside," Rick ushered them along, afraid that the noise would attract any unwanted attention. "We can all meet in one of the rooms and they can tell us what happened to them while they were gone. First, though, I think having something to eat would be nice."

"Agreed," Lori seconded. "I haven't eaten since yesterday."

"I'll cook!" Andrea announced and rushed into the building not seeing everyone wince. The woman had hardly cooked back at the farm and what she did, didn't taste very good. But they wouldn't complain as long as they got something in their bellies.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, they were all feasting on some kind of...mush that Andrea had cooked up. Carol had tried several times to help, but Andrea had shooed her out of the kitchen, stating that she had a long few days, as well. She had sighed and took her spot next to Sophia on the couch and when Andrea passed out the food, she was the first brave one to take a bite. It hadn't tasted bad...or good. It didn't really taste like anything, but it was food.

When everyone saw that Carol hadn't keeled over from the bite, they began to eat, as well. No one said a word about the bland taste, not even Merle, who usually spoke his mind whenever he wanted to.

He and Daryl sat across the room from everyone. Carol felt a little petty since she was avoiding Daryl. The night before, they had barely spoken while on watch and had only said a few words on the way back to their apartments. Daryl suspected she wasn't very happy with him and he was correct. She hadn't been too happy since their argument they had at the shelter. She knew her reasoning wasn't that good, but it had stung that Daryl had been so adamant about not letting her help get Lori and Beth back in the hospital. She had known the risks, of course, but she hadn't wanted to get her people back.

"So, tell us what happened to you two, Lori?" Andrea asked once she took her own seat. Everyone stopped what they were doing and gave Lori their full attention, which didn't seem to bother the woman.

"Well, Beth and I were taken to a hospital. Grady Memorial."

"Were you in any danger, mom?" Carl asked from his spot pressed into her side.

"I-I don't know, honestly. We weren't there that long to find out."

"Thank the Lord," Hershel interjected and pulled Beth close.

"They did have us do a lot of work," Beth added. "Noah and I had to mop every floor on one floor of the hospital and they had Lori do the laundry." Noah was sitting on the floor close to the two Greenes and was remaining silent.

Rick stood, then. "I have decided that if Glenn and Maggie don't return with good news about Terminus, we're going to take Noah to his family in Virginia. It is the least we can do for him and I would like for you all to agree to come with."

No one protested.

"Hell, I've been with you people this long," T-Dog said, laughing. "Might as well stick with you all to the end."


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen**

A large man stepped through the now open door of the shack. Glenn put himself in front of Maggie in case this man was working for the same people Martin had been. "Well, what do we have here?" The man stepped forward and allowed the couple to get a better look at him.

He wore green khaki's stuffed into military boots. On his torso was a white tank top and in his hands a large rifle. His hair was shaved close to his head and red. A handlebar mustache nearly covered his upper lip. "Rosita! Eugene! Looks like we found us some hostages."

Two other people stepped into the room. A Hispanic woman with a cropped top tied above her bellybutton and short shorts (not very ideal clothes to wear in the middle of the apocalypse) and a man that, to Glenn's surprise, supported a dark mullet on his head.

"What did you all do to get tied-up?" The larger man kneeled in front of Glenn.

"Trespassing, apparently." Even bound and on his knees, Glenn still retained some of his sense of humor.

"We've been staking out this place for a few days," he stood. "We're in need of some supplies and a good night's rest. Hoped this was a place for that. But what we found was that people would go in and never come out."

"That's what we saw, too," Maggie spoke up.

The Hispanic woman, Rosita, walked behind them and with her knife, cut them free. Glenn and Maggie rubbed their sore wrists and got to their feet. "What did you do to the guy that came out of here?" Glenn asked.

"He's dead," Abraham answered matter-of-factly. "Ain't no loss, though." Maggie and Glenn nodded their head, agreeing.

"Where are you guys from?" Rosita asked, cocking her hip.

Since they had just saved them and not killed them, Glenn figured they could trust the three of them. "We were scouting the place out to see if it would be a good place for our people."

"The answer to that would be a negative," Eugene answered. Up to that point he had been silent.

"Yeah. We know."

"Well, we aren't going to let them sick bastards alone. We got a truck and a rocket launcher. I say we tear their shit up. If you help us, we'll give you a ride back to your people."

Glenn looked at Maggie and they seemed to speak without actually talking. "All right. Deal," he said and turned back to Abraham. If those people were bad and they had signs telling people to find sanctuary there, they needed to be stopped.

* * *

As it grew dark, people started to retire to their rooms. Carl and Noah would be sharing a room with Lori and Rick in the other. Randall would be on the couch. Andrea would get one room, Hershel the other and T-Dog would sleep on the couch. At first, Hershel had wanted his youngest daughter with him, but she had protested and said she would rather share a room with Sophia. In the last apartment, Beth and Sophia slept in one room, Daryl and Carol the other and Merle took the couch.

Carol was getting ready for bed, after saying goodnight to the Beth and Sophia in the other room. Daryl was already lounging on the bed, watching her. "You still mad at me?" He asked.

She looked at him over her shoulder as she peeled off her bra. "What do you think?" She placed the bra on the dresser and slipped on her nightshirt, which hit her mid-thigh. "If I wasn't mad at you, I think I would be facing you as I changed." Next, she slid her pants down her legs and stepped out of them. Daryl didn't get so much as a flash of underwear.

"I only said those things because I didn't want you to go into danger."

"So, then stepping outside is off limits, then?" She walked over to the bed and sat on the edge.

"You know that ain't what I meant," he grumped.

"Listen, Daryl. I'm not delusional enough to think I'm some kind of super bad ass and could survive anything that comes my way, but there are times where I have to take risks and I was willing to take a risk for Lori and Beth. They would have done the same."

"Don't know about that..." Daryl mumbled. Lori was pregnant and Beth was just a kid. Daryl couldn't see anyone of them rushing into some weird hospital to rescue Carol, but he didn't say that aloud.

Carol glared, as if reading his mind. "Look, I know why you didn't want me to go in there. I understand. Just next time, talk calmly with me, not yell in my face and make decisions for me. I've had enough of that for a lifetime."

Daryl looked guilty and he reached her. "Fuck, I'm sorry. I won't do it again."

She smiled weakly. "It's okay. We're in this together, Daryl." She took his hand. "I promise not to run off on another 'fool' mission without letting you know."

"And I promise to be willing to talk things out when you want to do something dangerous." He smirked and tugged her close, knowing that he was forgiven.

Carol pressed a finger to his lips as he leaned down to kiss her. "We have to sleep tonight, Daryl. Rick expects Glenn and Maggie back tomorrow and if they do, we'll have a long day ahead of us."

"But who knows when we'll actually get a real bed again," his voice was borderline a whine. He was actually pouting!

She rolled her eyes. "Oh, all right." She reached for his neck, pulled him close and kissed him hard on the mouth. Truthfully, she hadn't wanted to go to sleep yet either.

* * *

Parts of Terminus were ablaze, the fences were down and walkers swarmed the place. Glenn looked on and didn't feel guilty. These people would have killed him and Maggie if given the chance and from the looks of it, they had killed other people, as well.

"Ain't no sanctuary for all, anymore," Abraham smirked. He had been the one to shoot the rocket launcher and looked almost giddy as he did so.

"Nope." The shadows from the fire flickered over Glenn's face and he turned to the large man at his side. "Are you ready to take us back to our people now?" He was anxious to get back before they came looking for them. Just because Terminus was ablaze, didn't mean that there were no survivors.

"You bet. But first, I got a question to ask you, kid." Glenn narrowed his eyes at being called a kid, but didn't say anything. "You see, before things got bad, we were on a mission to get to DC. Eugene here," Abraham wrapped an around around the man with the mullet's shoulders. "Has himself the cure."

Glenn and Maggie's eyes opened wide in shock. "He has the cure...for the ap-?"

"He can stop all this mess," Abraham interrupted. "As long as we get him to D.C. We'll take you to your people and if they can give us some supplies, we'll be mighty obliged. Hell, if you want, you can join us."

Glenn looked at Maggie. If Eugene had the cure and was able to put an end to all of this, maybe he could start a family with the woman he loved. Being on the run and fighting for survival weren't good conditions for a baby and they didn't know how Lori would do it, but they wanted a world that was safe for a child of theirs to grow up in.

"I'll talk to Rick about it," Glenn finally said, shaking himself from his dream. "Since Terminus wasn't what we hoped, so the chances of him taking your offer into consideration are high." He smiled.

"Great!" Abraham slapped Glenn hard on the shoulder, causing the younger man to wince and stumble forward a step. "The more the merrier."

* * *

Everyone in the apartment building was jolted awake when the sound of a large vehicle could be heard coming down the street. Daryl, still half-naked, jumped from the bed and went for his crossbow. Carol was on his heels with a gun. Beth and Sophia stood in the doorway of their bedroom, eyes round with fear. The last time unknown vehicles came around, two of their own had been kidnapped.

Rick was already in the hallway, hair disheveled and gun in hand. "Daryl, cover me," he ordered and Daryl followed the man down the stairs. Carol, Andrea and T-Dog weren't far behind.

The door swung open before Rick could reach the bottom of the stairs and if Glenn hadn't announced that it was him, he would have been shot. Maggie followed slowly after and looked up in shock to see most of her group aiming weapons at them.

"Uh, hey guys." Glenn waved awkwardly. "Um. Could you put all of your guns down? They're making me kind of nervous."

"I got half a mind to shoot an arrow in your ass," Daryl growled and was the last to put down his crossbow. He had almost thought it was the Grady people coming to attack, though he hadn't know how they would have found them.

"Sorry!" Glenn apologized again, Then, he turned to the open door and made a 'come here' motion with his hand. Three more people joined them in the already cramped stairwell. "This is Abraham," he pointed to the large man with red hair. "Rosita and Eugene. They're good people. They saved Maggie and my life."

Rick ran a hand down his face, looking utterly exhausted now that there wasn't a threat. "Can we talk about this in the morning?" He asked, sounding like a tired parent talking to their child.

"Uh." Glenn looked back at the three newcomers. "Sure. Do we have room for them?"

"We have extra pillows and blankets, but they'll have to sleep on the floors," Lori answered, looking just as tired as Rick.

"That'll be better than what we've been sleeping on ma'am," Abraham spoke for the first time since walking in the door.

"Follow me, then, and I'll get you settled." Lori motioned for them to come up the stairs and that was everyone's cue to disburse back to their bedrooms.

Carol checked on the girls, ensuring them that everything was okay, before heading back to the room she shared with Daryl. Daryl spoke briefly with Merle, who hadn't even roused when they rushed through the apartment. What woke him was when Carol and Daryl had walked into the apartment.

Daryl fell face first back into the bed and buried his head in his pillow. "I can sleep for another twelve hours," he said, voice muffled. "I'm fuckin' exhausted."

"Well, hadn't gotten much sleep before Glenn showed up." Carol smirked and kissed his cheek as she curled into his side. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. They were asleep in seconds.

* * *

The next morning, everyone gathered in the hallway like they had before Glenn and Maggie had left them. Carol and Lori cooked the breakfast and were surprised when Rosita offered to help. With everyone fed, Rick decided it was time to have a group meeting. It seemed that overnight, there group had doubled.

"We're eighteen strong now," Rick announced. Before they had found the farm, there had only been ten of them. "With that many people, staying here is not an option. Glenn and Maggie have told me about Terminus and we will not being going there."

"Can I say something?" Abraham stepped forward and asked.

"Sure." Rick shrugged.

"Eugene here, has the cure for this whole mess. Our mission is to get to D.C and I suggest that you all come with. Strength in numbers and we need all the people to keep Eugene here safe."

Murmurs went throughout the group, some excited and some...skeptic. But Rick was the one to speak. "Well, i wanted to bring Noah to his family in Virginia. We can all accompany him there and then, go on to D.C."

"My family may even want to come with," Noah spoke up.

"Then, it's decided," Rick said. "We'll go to Virginia and then, go with Abraham and his group to D.C." The decision had been quick, but if Eugene really knew the cure, then they all wanted to stick by him.

At the back of the group, Daryl leaned close to Carol and whispered, "Do you believe the guy with the mullet really has the cure?" He had been one of the skeptic.

"I...don't know," Carol answered honestly. "It seems too good to be true."


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

After they finished their meal, everyone gathered their supplies and placed them in the four vehicles that they had. Fortunately, they were able to put most of the supplies in the back of Abraham's large army truck. Everyone would be cramped as it was in the cars and were glad that much needed space would be taken up by their supplies.

Glenn and Maggie went with Abraham and company in the truck, Rick had his family and Randall and Noah in his car, Hershel had Beth, Andrea, and T-dog in his car and in the last car was the Dixons and Carol and Sophia. Virginia was a ways away and it would be hard for all of them to leave their home state behind, but there was nothing for them there. Not anymore.

Rick led the way and Abraham brought up the rear. Carol sat in the back with Sophia while Daryl drove and Merle sat in the passenger's seat. The oldest Dixon turned to his little brother and squeezed his shoulder. "Looks like we're finally goin' to leave Georgia, huh?"

"Yep," Daryl nodded.

"You've never been out of Georgia, Daryl?" Sophia's curious voice spoke from the backseat. Daryl made eye contact with the girl in the rearview mirror.

"Nope. Not once. Haven't even come close, either."

"Mommy and I went to Kentucky one time to visit my grandma. I was really little, so I don't remember much." Daryl's eyes went from Sophia to Carol and in her eyes, he saw there was a story there.

As Sophia chattered on about the different places she wished she could go like Paris and London and DisneyWorld, Daryl kept glancing at Carol. Though there was a smile on her face as she looked down at her daughter, there was sadness in her eyes. Daryl knew she was feeling guilty that Sophia had been able to go anywhere, but it had not been Carol's fault. It had been all Ed's and now, he was paying the price for it by burning in hell.

Their first stop since leaving the apartments was just over the border in South Carolina. A few of the men gathered by a car with Noah and Rick to look over a map. So far, they had been lucky and hadn't run into major snarls on the highway. Daryl went off in the woods with Merle to find some meat for later and Carol kept an eye on the kids while Lori, Andrea and Rosita gathered firewood and started a fire to cook on.

Carol watched with a fond smile when Carl produced  _Sorry_! from the car he was traveling in with his parents. Of course, the boy would secret away games for them to play and Carol didn't blame him. Carl, Sophia and Beth sat around the board, choosing their colors. Even Randall limped over and took the color that had not been chosen yet. Then, they all set down to play a fierce game.

"No fair!" Carl cried after a few minutes. "You and Beth ganged up on me." With a pout, he put his blue piece back in the start spot.

"It isn't our fault that we decided to form an alliance. Right, Beth?" Sophia smiled over at her friend and they high-fived over the board.

"Randall, do you want to form an alliance?" Carl asked, hopefully.

"Sorry, dude. Every man for himself." And with that, he took Carl's other piece and sent it back when Randall drew a Sorry! card. The girls giggled and Carl continued to pout. Carol found it all entertaining.

When Daryl and Merle returned a little while later, Daryl passed off the string of squirrels to his brother, who took them to the ladies around the fire, and joined Carol as she continued to watch the four play. They were on their third game now and the girls had each won one time. Carl was still pouting, but eventually lightened up when it looked like they were going to be nice to him this round.

"Everything okay out there?" She turned and asked Daryl, who had been silent standing there.

"Ran into two walkers, but that was it. Everything okay here?"

"Yeah. Noah is helping Rick and the other men draw up a route to his home in Virginia." She placed her elbows on the car behind her and leaned back. "Then, Abraham is mapping a route to D.C from there."

Daryl mirrored Carol and leaned against the car, as well. "Do you think going to D.C is a good idea?"

"If the cure is the real deal, yes. But it'll be dangerous. So many people lived in D.C, which means that there will be..."

"So many walkers," Daryl finished. "I know. What do you think the cure will do? It won't bring back the ones we lost to the virus."

"Maybe if we get bit, then we won't turn into one of them...?" She shrugged. "I don't know. I want to believe that something like that exists, but we can't get too hopeful these days."

"I agree," Daryl sighed. "Merle is just as skeptical as we are. However, he's like that about most things." He chuckled.

Carol joined in. "I can see that."

"Hey, no fair!" Carl cried again. This time his last piece was about to head into the safety zone when Sophia's green piece swooped down and knocked it off the board. Beth's yellow piece was closer to Sophia's home spot, but she had decided to take out Carl's instead.

"Damn, Sophia is pretty ruthless."

"That she is. Especially when it comes to Carl," Carol smiled. Proud.

* * *

That night, they decided to set up camp along the road. Glenn, Maggie and Rick had first in watch while everyone else slept in tents or the cars. There were three tents and four vehicles to sleep in. Lori and Carl slept in one tent. When Rick got off watch, he would join them. Hershel, Beth and Sophia would be another because Hershel did not have watch that night and could keep an eye on the two. Daryl and Carol had their own tent and when it was time for their turn on watch, Glenn and Maggie would take it over. Everyone else who was left, split up between the four vehicles. Merle and Randall, Noah and T-Dog, Michonne and Andrea, and Abraham, Rosita and Eugene.

The night was a little chilly and Carol had no problem curling more into Daryl's side. He was like her own furnace, after all. However, she felt a little uneasy that Sophia was in another tent than their own. This wasn't like the apartments, they were exposed out here.

"Stop worryin'," Daryl mumbled, sleepily. "She's safe." Even without her saying a word, Daryl had known exactly what she'd been thinking about. "Those on watch ain't goin' to let anythin' come into camp and when it's our turn, we'll do the same."

"I know," she sighed. "I still worry."

"Which is understandable and fine. As long as it doesn't keep me up." He smirked at her before kissing her cheek. "Now, get some sleep. We have to get up for watch in a few hours and then, we'll be on the road again. Rick wants to get to Virginia as quick as possible."

"Then, he can move onto D.C and he has a reason, too. Lori is starting show now." She turned and pressed her back to his chest and he wrapped a strong arm around her. "That's another thing I'm worried about, Daryl. She had a c-section with Carl. Hershel was a vet, I don't know if he could perform one on a human."

"So, you're goin' to take responsibility, then?"

"Before Ed, I was going to school to become a nurse. I know that's not really the same, but I know some things."

"You always said you wanted to help people when we were kids. Becomin' a nurse would have been perfect for you." He sounded more awake now.

"It came in handy when... Never mind." She shook her head. "I don't want to think about him, anymore."

"Then, don't. But if there's anythin' you need to talk about, you know you got me. Right?"

"Of course." She took his hand and kissed his knuckles. "Thank you, Daryl. I love you."

"Love you, too."

* * *

The next morning, after a meal of leftover squirrel meat and canned fruit, they were on the road again. This time, Daryl sat in the back with Carol and the two leaned on one another as they dozd. They had not gotten much sleep the night before. At first, Carol had been a little uneasy about having Sophia in the front seat, but she knew that she could trust Merle to keep her safe. The only thing she had been worried about is what the older Dixon would talk about with her daughter.

"If I hear anything that sounds even remotely sexual or inappropriate for my twelve year old daughter, Merle Dixon, I will flick you in the ear. Hard."

Merle's eyes widened in mock horror. "Oh please, don't do that. I'll be good. Promise."

Carol fixed him with a stern glare. "That's what I'll do while we're in the car. You don't know what I'll do once we're out of it."

They had a glaring match which resulted in Merle being the first to look away and muttering a 'Fine' before climbing into the driver's seat. Sophia was already there, happy that she was actually allowed to sit in the front.

"Wow," Daryl whispered. "I don't think I've ever seen Merle back down from anything. Ever."

"When it comes to my daughter, I don't mess around."

"I can tell." Daryl chuckled. She was exactly like a mama bear protecting her cub.

After that, they were on the road and Daryl and Carol were snoozing in the back. However, Merle didn't, not for one second, think that Carol didn't have at least one ear listening out for him, so he kept to safe topics when Sophia felt the need to talk to him.

"Did you know my mom, too, when you were little? Just like Daryl?" Sophia asked after a few minutes of silence.

"Nah. I wasn't around much when Daryl was a kid," he answered. "Hell, I didn't even know Daryl had made a friend back then until recently."

"Why weren't you around so much?" She asked innocently. If it had been anyone else, like that Grimes boy, asking him questions, he would have snapped at them, but he had a soft spot for this girl.

"It's a long story, girlie. Let's just say Daryl and my daddy wasn't so nice and if I stuck around, I would have killed him eventually."

"Was your dad like my dad?" She asked, quietly.

Merle remembered Ed briefly from camp. He remembered the way Carol cowered around him and how Sophia stuck close to Carol. If he been sober, maybe he would have actually done something about it. "Yeah," he finally answered. "He was. But they're both dead and we got nothin' to worry about, anymore."

Sophia reached over and squeezed his wrist, close to his stump. "I'm glad."

* * *

That night, they slept once more on the side of the road. They would soon be out of South Carolina and their destination grew closer. Everyone's spirits seem to lift the closer they got to Virginia, which was a welcome change from just merely existing. Sophia slept with Carol and Daryl in a tent. Carol curled her arms around Sophia while Daryl curled his arms around her. But sometime in the night, he had included Sophia in the embrace. Carol had woken up hot, but unbelievably comfortable when she saw that she was smashed between the two people she loved most in the world.

After breakfast, Carol went briefly to the small stream a little ways into the woods. As they ate, everyone had taken turns cleaning up in it. Carol cooked breakfast and Lori had taken Sophia and Carl to the stream and Carol was the one of the last to go.

However, when she got there, she saw that she wasn't alone. Eugene sat on the bank, looking thoughtful. Carol didn't know if she liked the look on the man's face, especially when he looked at her. He looked guilty.

"Good morning, Eugene," she greeted. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything is fine." He didn't make a move to say another word or...move.

"Um. Is there a reason why you're just sitting there?" As he had all of his clothes on, Carol knew that he wasn't bathing. She shuddered thinking about walking in on that.

"I was just thinking. To most people, nature seems to 'clear their head', so I decided to give it a try. It doesn't seem to be working," he huffed.

"Is...there something you need to clear your head of?"

His head jerked up at her and quickly, he was on his feet. "N-No, ma'am. It's just an expression. I will leave you now. Good day." And just like that, the man was gone and Carol's suspicions about him only grew.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen**

_July 1982_

_Together, Daryl and Carol sat on Carol's swingset, a game of Trivia spread across the boards. In one hand, Carol held a card and tapped it against her chin and looked at Daryl. She had yet to ask him a question. "So, Daryl. How does it make you feel?"_

_Daryl narrowed his eyes. "Is that really what's on the damn thing? I thought this was supposed to be trivia game, not Twenty Question."_

_"It is a trivia game, but this just made me think of something. So, how does it make you feel that you have the same name as an actress?"_

_Daryl's eyes narrowed even more and his mouth turned down in a scowl._

_"I'm talking about Daryl Hannah, of course." She batted her pretty blue eyes at him, loving the reaction she was getting from her best friend. It wasn't hard getting a reaction out of Daryl._

_Daryl's face soften a little and he didn't look as annoyed as he shrugged. "Don't know. I guess I don't mind since she's the one with the boy's name. It also doesn't hurt that she's pretty hot, too."_

_A card went slicing through the air and hit him in the middle of the nose. Carol sat across from him, arms crossed and...pouting? Oh, this was good. Daryl smirked. "Are you jealous?"_

_"No!" She nearly shouted and reached for a card from the deck. "Let's start playing already," she huffed. "Question one: Who sings the hit song "Physical'?"_

_He shrugged again. "I don't know. Some chick with a high-pitched voice?"_

_"Olivia Newton-John," she said._

_"Yeah, like I said. Some chick with a high pitch voice."_

_Carol shook her head and slid the deck toward him. "Wrong. Now, it's my turn." Daryl rolled his eyes and picked up the card on the top of the deck._

_"Who is the current president of the United States?"_

_"Easy. Ronald Reagan." She beamed and grabbed a card. "Hmm. This should go along with the question you just asked. Where is the White House located?"_

_"What white house? I'm sure there's a million of 'em. That's not fair." He winked, letting Carol know that he was only kidding. "That's easy, too. Washington D.C."_

_"I'd like to go there someday," Carol sighed._

_"To the White House? Why? It's just a really big house with super security around it."_

_"No, not the White House. Washington D.C. I heard it's beautiful. Especially in the springtime when the cherry blossom trees bloom." She sighed again. "I wish my parents went on vacations because then I would beg them to go there." She reached over and grasped his hand, shocking him. "If I can convince them to go next summer, would you come with?"_

_He'd love to. "I don't know... I ain't got the money an-"_

_"My parents would pay for you. They have a lot of money since all they do is work."_

_He thought a moment. "Uh, okay," he agreed, though deep down he knew that he wouldn't go. All he wanted to was make her happy, so he said yes._

_"Great! I promise, Daryl, that one of these days we'll be going to Washington D.C!"_

* * *

Daryl was behind the wheel when they passed a sign saying they were only fifteen miles from Richmond. Carol peeked into the rearview mirror and saw Merle staring out the window. One hand was up by his mouth, chewing on his nails (a habit both Dixons had) while his stump rested nearing Sophia's head, which was lying on his thigh as she slept. The girl had really taken to Merle and Carol smiled fondly at the two. As long as Merle remained a good influence, she didn't mind if her daughter hung around him.

"Almost there," Daryl announced. Up ahead, the brake lights glared red in the light of dusk. "Noah said his place was just out of Richmond. Can't be too far, now. That's probably why we're all stopping."

Carol agreed. Only a few people left their vehicles to join Rick and when Daryl climbed from the driver's seat, Carol moved to follow. "Can you watch her, Merle?" She asked before stepping out. "I really don't want to wake her up."

Merle waved his good hand at her. "Go on. I'll keep an eye on the girl." He almost looked put out by the request, but Carol knew better. She could read Dixon men and she knew that he was proud that she had asked him to look after her daughter when Lori and Hershel still had an uneasy time of letting their children near the man.

Once Rick saw that everyone who was going to join them was there, he spoke, "We'll camp out for the night. But Noah has informed me that his home is only a few hours away. Tomorrow morning, a few of us will go and check it out." There was a little uneasy as everyone remembered the last time they had all been separated.

"What is the plan if Noah does find his family?" Glenn spoke up. He had grown fond of the young man on their trip.

"I'll stay with them," Noah answered. "We lived in a gated community, with high fences. We should be safe."

Rick's eyes widened. "I didn't know any of that."

"You all could stay, too."

"Now, what a minute!" Abraham burst forward. "What about D.C? We agreed to come with you all to Virginia, if you all came with us to D.C."

"We'll see tomorrow how secure this place is," Rick said, hoping to pacify the large man. "If I think it's the perfect place for my family. We're staying and anyone else is welcome to join us. If there are others who want to go to D.C, they will come with you."

Abraham seemed only slightly satisfied with the answer and didn't say anything else as he stepped back to his spot between Rosita and Eugene.

"Now, we all need to set up camp before it gets completely dark. Glenn, Daryl and I will be on watch for the first part of the night. T-Dog, Maggie and Merle can take second watch."

An hour and a half later, they were all fed and sitting around the camp. Since there were so many of them now, no one had much of privacy. However, Daryl was able to pull Carol aside and together they sat on the bed of the truck. It was facing the road and no one could see them. Sophia was in the safe care of Merle and had even coaxed Carl to play a game with the two of them. Faint cries of 'you cheated!' could be heard where they were sitting.

"The kid is right," Daryl chuckled, talking about Carl, since his was the voice they heard the most. "Merle probably is cheating."

Carol was about to say that he wouldn't, but stopped and laughed softly into Daryl's side instead. "Yeah, you're probably right. Do you remember when we used to play that trivia game I had?"

"Yeah. You always forced me to play it with you."

"No, I didn't," she huffed and scowled at him. "...Okay, maybe I did a little. But you could have always said no."

"I did. Multiple times."

"You could have said no and meant it."

Daryl opened his mouth to speak and stopped. "You're right." When they were small, it had always been hard to say no to Carol, especially when she gave him her puppy dog eyes. He couldn't deny her anything and if they had been allowed to grow up together and get married, Daryl knew he would have spoiled her. Sophia, too.

His mouth went dry at the thought. Not for the first time, he thought about how Sophia could have been his. He could have been a father.

"What's on your mind?" Carol's soft voice brought him back to the present.

"Uh, nothing. Just thinkin' about how we were as kids."

Carol leaned into him and Daryl wrapped an arm around her waist. "We were pretty damn cute, weren't we? If we had been allowed to be young people together, we could have rivaled Glenn and Maggie."

"With all their lovey dovey stuff? Nah." Daryl made a face.

"Oh, Daryl Dixon. I bet you wouldn't be able to keep your hands off me. You can't now." At that moment, his hand was creeping up her waist and at her words, he brought it back down.

"Sound a little cocky, huh?" His words tickled her cheek before he kissed the corner of her mouth.

"I'm not cocky. I just know what I'm talking about." She turned her head and allowed Daryl to kiss her properly on the mouth.

* * *

"All right, pay up," Merle announced with his good hand open and palm up. "They're makin' out just like I told you they would be." Sophia and Carl grumbled as they emptied what they betted into Merle's hand. From Carl, there were two peppermint candies and Sophia had a stick of gum. Merle shoved his prize into his pocket, saving them for a rainy day.

"Merle, do you think my mom and Daryl will get married?" Sophia stood from her spot next to Carl to sit next to Merle. Her wide, innocent eyes blinked up at him.

"Don't know, kid. Things aren't how they used to be. There ain't no ministers or things like that anymore. But I reckon they are as close to being married as they can get."

"I'm glad." Sophia rested her head on Merle's shoulder. "He makes her happy."

"Merle." This time, Carl spoke and took a seat on the other side of Merle. "Do you think my mom and dad will start loving each other again? I mean, they're talking now after mom got taken, but do you think they still love each other."

"What am I, Dr. Phil?" He asked. "And I don't particularly like your parents, kid, so i couldn't tell you. Sorry."

"That's okay," he sighed and placed his head on Merle's other arm. In a matter of minutes, Merle Dixon had two sleeping preteens on his arms and didn't have the heart to wake them.

* * *

"Aw, I wish I had a camera," Carol said when she rounded the truck with Daryl to find Merle leaning against the front, sleeping, and with Carl and Sophia on either side of him. Sleeping.

"Huh." Daryl shook his head and crossed his arms. "A picture would have been perfect for blackmail."

Carol elbowed him in the side. "That's not very nice, Daryl Dixon."

"He would have done the same," he mumbled. Carol didn't argue that and straightened just as Lori made her way to the couple.

"Carol, have you seen Carl? I thought he was playing with Sophia and since she's right there-" Carol stepped to the side to reveal that Carl was also slumbering against the oldest Dixon. "Oh, there he is." Lori made a slight face of disgust before seeing that Carol was looking at her disappointingly.

"Well, it's time for bed." She went and nudged her son awake, who looked up at her with blurry eyes. "Will Sophia be joining us tonight?"

"No. I'm not on watch, so she can sleep with me. But I'll let her rest there for a little longer. I think I'm going to sit on watch with Daryl for a little bit."

"How's a man supposed to get any sleep with all of this racket," Merle growled and cracked one eye open to look up at the two women. Behind Carol, Daryl was hiding a smile. "And I didn't say that your daughter could use my arm as a pillow."

"Then wake her up," Carol shrugged. "She looks really comfortable, though."

Merle looked down at the little girl on his arm and looked like was about to shake her away, but stopped. "She can sleep there for a little more. At least until you two are done makin' out again."

Carol's mouth fell open. "We were not!"

"Were to, missy. We made bets on it and everything. Right, Little Grimes?" Carl nodded enthusiastically.

"You made a bet with two twelve year olds?" Lori asked with disapproval.

The older Dixon shrugged. "It was just a little harmless fun, lady. I didn't see no problem with it. It ain't like I took their firstborn child."

"Hmm," Lori huffed and walked away, taking Carl with her. Carol wanted to tell Merle that the woman would warm up to him soon, but honestly didn't know if she would. Her lost, she supposed.

"I really dislike that woman," Merle grumbled and leaned back against the truck once more and looked up at Carol. "Hurry and sit with your man a bit. The ground is damn uncomfortable."

Carol couldn't help but smile and leaned down to kiss his cheek. "Give me fifteen minutes and I'll be right back. Thank you for not waking Sophia up."

"Yeah, yeah." He waved his hand, but looked pleased.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Chapter Seventeen**

The next morning, Rick woke the group up just as the sun was rising. He wanted to take Noah back to his family and see if the place was safe enough for his family. Daryl had went off hunting before the wake up call and though, he had only a few hours of sleep the previous night, he felt wide awake. If the place was as secure as Noah said it was, then this could be a place they could all settle. Instead of constantly running, he, Carol and Sophia could finally just be together...as if they were a family. Of course, Merle would be there, too, but that was a given.

When he returned an hour later with a few squirrels, Rick and Glenn were getting a car ready, filing it with gas, for the small trip. Noah was looking at a map with Michonne on the hood of the car, telling her the best way to get to his community once more.

Daryl was glad Rick had not asked him to go and if he had, Daryl would have said no. The last time he left Carol behind, she went off with Merle to get two of their own back. He was not going to risk coming back to see her gone again. Those that were going with Noah were Rick, Michonne, Glenn and Andrea. That was plenty.

The plan was for them to return by nightfall. If that was not the case, then backup would be sent out to see what the holdup was. Though Rick hadn't said anything, there was a fear that the group Noah was a part of may not be so friendly.

"Daddy!" A whine could be heard through the camp and everyone looked over just in time to see Beth Greene stomp her foot angrily. "I'm sixteen and I want to go. He's my friend and I want to see him get reunited with his family."

"You will not go," Hershel said firmly. "I have told you twice already."

"But what if I never see him again?"

"Then, say your goodbyes now." Hershel stood. "I will not have my daughter go off somewhere where I am not present and there is not room for two more people in that car."

"You let Maggie go places without you!" Beth cried and crossed her arms, pouting and not caring that she was making a scene. In fact, she hoped that by doing so someone would come to her aid to convince her father to let her go.

"Maggie is almost twenty-five years old. She is an adult."

"I am almos-"

"No." He held up a hand. "You are not. With this behavior, Elizabeth Ann Greene, even if you were an adult, I would seriously doubt it. Now, go ask Mrs. Grimes if there is anything you can do to help around camp."

Beth stomped her foot again and then, stomped away. In the opposite direction of where Lori was. Daryl ducked his head and continued skinning the squirrels, shaking his head. Carol came by, then and took a seat. "Well, that was quite the show," she said. "I hope Sophia doesn't start acting like that in a few years."

"It's inevitable," Daryl said. "All girls get like that at that age."

Carol placed a hand on her hip. "And how would you know that, Daryl Dixon? I was not like that at that age, thank you very much."

"Merle was," he said with a straight face. Carol couldn't help but laugh.

"No, he was not!" She said in between fits of laughter.

"You're right. He's like that now."

This time, both of them started laughing. Merle came over to see what the hell was going on and when they saw him, their laughs got even louder. "What's so damn funny?" He asked.

They didn't answer.

"Fine. Don't answer me, then." And he stomped off. For some reason, this made Carol and Daryl laugh even harder.

* * *

The rest of the group saw off Noah when it was time to go. Beth hugged him tearfully and even Lori had a few tears in her eyes to see the young man go. If it had not been for him, they may not have been able to escape from the hospital.

"I hope your family is safe and well," she said and gave him a hug.

"I hope so, too." Noah smiled. "They would have liked to meet you all." He addressed the rest of the group.

"If this place is as secure as you say, then they might," Rick spoke and placed a hand on Noah's shoulder. He also looked like he wanted to reach out to Lori, but kept his other arm close to his body.

"Well, we should be going," he said. "Remember, if we are not back by nightfall..." This was issued toward the men of the camp, who all nodded. They understood what they would need to do, but hoped that they wouldn't have to do it. Noah seemed like he came from good people.

* * *

Several hours later, Abraham was pacing by the vehicles and continued to glance at the sky. The sun was slowly making its way to the horizon. The large man wasn't pacing because he thought Rick and company were in trouble but because he wanted to know if there would be a large group going with him, Rosita and Eugene to D.C.

Rosita had brought him a plate an hour before and rolled her eyes when he ate from it as he paced. No one else was worried about the group. They were plenty capable and Rick and Glenn always seemed to make it back to the people they loved. No matter what.

An hour later, a car pulled up to their camp and five figures stepped out. Odd, Carol observed. If Noah had been reunited with his family, there should only be four people. When they stepped into the light of the campfire, Carol gasped. Noah was with them. Michonne came up behind him supporting a bloody Andrea.

Carol rushed to her friends. "Andrea! Are you okay?"

The woman gave her a wan smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. The blood isn't mine. A walker surprised me and I twisted my knee." Carol slipped under Andrea's other arm and together, she and Michonne took Andrea to Hershel, who was already clearing a space for her.

Rick walked into the middle of the camp, looking weary. "It's gone," he said. "Noah's community. It was overrun. No one and nothing was left." He turned to Abraham. "Looks like we're all going with you to D.C."

Later that evening, with only the campfire as light, Hershel wrapped Andrea's knee and Carol carefully watched, hoping to learn. From where she sat, she could see Noah sitting close to the fire. No one else was around and the young man looked so lost. Carol excused herself from Hershel's side and sat by Noah. "I'm sorry for your lost," she said, knowing that the words probably wouldn't comfort him.

"Thank you. It's just...just that I had so much hope _for once_ that I would see my family again!" Noah's eyes swam and Carol was surprised that he actually spoke to her. "I was in that hospital almost since the beginning and when I saw that there was no way out, I just accepted that it would be my life. Then, Lori and Beth came, we got out of there and seeing my mom and brothers again became a reality." He sighed and placed a head in his hands. Carol rubbed his back.

"I should have known it was too good to be true," he almost whispered.

"I know we can't replace your family, Noah. But you have us, now. We'll take care of you, just like we take care of each other."

Noah offered her a slight smile. "Thank you. I...I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome. Now, why don't you get some sleep, huh? Rick and Abraham are going to want to leave early in the morning." Which was something no one was looking forward, too. They were constantly on the move now.

"Okay." He stood and Carol followed.

"And if you ever need to talk to someone, you can talk to me or anyone else in the group. Except Merle...he may try to give you some bad advice on getting a woman." She winked and Noah smiled again.

"Thank you, again. Goodnight."

"Night."

Carol watched him leave before sitting in the spot he had just vacated. Hershel had released Andrea and was no in his own tent with Andrea going toward a vehicle to sleep in. Noise approaching her had Carol looking up to see Daryl. He took the spot next to her. "Sophia's in the tent, now," he said. "Didn't even wake up when I carried her there."

"She can be a heavy sleeper sometimes. Is Merle glad to have his arm back?"

"Yeah. But I think he kind of enjoyed having those kids snuggle up to him. Don't let him know I said that."

"I won't," she laughed softly. "And I agree."

Though, they knew that they would have to get up early, Carol and Daryl sat together by the fire, quietly talking until it was time to switch watch shifts. Since Daryl had taken watch the night before, he didn't have to do so that night.

"We should get to bed or we'll regret it later," Carol said softly, not wanting to move from where she was snuggled against Daryl's side.

"Yeah. We should. Probably a good idea, too, if we get back into the tent before Sophia wakes up and finds she's all alone." This made Carol get to her feet and help Daryl to his.

"I love you," she said before slipping into their tent and kissed him.

"Love you, too."

They quietly slipped into the tent. Carol crawled next to Sophia, who was snoring softly. Daryl slipped on Carol's other side and pulled a blanket over them both. They were asleep in a matter of moments.


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen**

Once more, they were off early in the morning. Merle, who was the least sleepy of the three was behind the wheel of the truck. Sophia sat beside him in the passenger seat. "Y'all wouldn't be so tired if you went to bed at a decent time," he said as he glanced at the couple in the back seat through the rearview mirror. They were leaning on one another.

"I was talking to Noah," Carol replied. "He needed someone to talk to him, especially after yesterday."

Merle's face softened at the mention of the young man. He had so much hope of finding the rest of his family for it all to be torn away from him. Right now, he was in the same vehicle as the Grimes. At breakfast, he sat sullenly off on his own. Beth had tried talking to him, but he hadn't said a word. Just nodded and shook his head at the right times.

Carl had fallen back asleep almost the moment he climbed into his parent's car and Noah had seen his opportunity at not being bothered, so he climbed in on the other side. Beth had looked disappointed, but didn't say anything. She knew how he must be feeling, after losing the rest of his family so tragically. She climbed in the same car as her father and sister and Glenn.

Abraham, Rosita and Eugene led the way this time. The large, red-headed man looked happier and lighter than he had been the last few days. Restarting his mission to get Eugene to DC must have sparked his good mood. While the rest of them hoped they didn't run into hordes of walkers or bad people on their way there.

* * *

The sun was halfway across the sky when the caravan of vehicles pulled off to the side of the road for lunch. In the old world, it would have only taken two hours to get from Richmond to Washington DC. But now, they had to maneuver around other cars, pile ups and walkers.

They were only about fifteen miles away, now. Abraham looked absolutely giddy (which was kind of weird to see), Rosita looked happy and Eugene...looked down. He should have been the happiest of the trio. He was the one who was going to save them all.

"I think we should all find a place to hole up tonight. Somewhere close to the outskirts of the city," Rick suggested. "That way we would have the whole day to get Eugene to where he needs to be."

"Which is...where? Exactly," Andrea spoke up from her spot in between Michonne and T-Dog. Her injured leg laid straight out in front of her.

All eyes turned to Eugene, who grew even more uncomfortable. "Um..uh."

"I bet it's in the Washington Monument!" Glenn interrupted. "If you put a fence around it, there's no way any walkers can get in! Plus, it's huge. And tall!"

"What about the White House? There's a fence and I bet you there's a bunch of safe rooms inside that not even a rocket launcher could take down," Maggie joined in, smiling.

"What about the Pentagon?" T-Dog asked.

This sparked a conversation about the different places in DC it could be. But Rick, Carol, Daryl, Merle and Eugene didn't join in. The former four knew something was a little off if Eugene didn't know where he needed to go to give answers about the cure.

"Something is up with him," Carol leaned close to Daryl and whispered. This had not been the first time she had felt this way. When she had seen him in the woods a few days before, she had noticed there was something...off about him. And it wasn't that he wore his hair in a mullet.

"I know. I'm afraid that when we find out what it is, we'll be knee deep in shit."

Rick noticed the couple whispering and though he didn't know what they were saying, he had an idea what it was about. "We'll hole up for the night and send a few of us into DC tomorrow. I don't want the whole group, my family, to go into the city without knowing what we'll find."

"For once, I actually like one of your ideas, Officer Friendly!" With his only hand, Merle slapped the other man hard on his back and nearly caused him to topple over to his face.

"Thanks, Merle," Rick grumbled and rubbed his back. "I think."

"So, do you have an idea who will go?" Carol asked, feeling a little worried. Last time they had split the group up, some of them had been kidnapped and others had almost been kidnapped.

"I think half of us should go and the other half should say. It's a given that the kids will stay behind, along with Randall and Andrea since they are still healing. Lori will be staying behind, along with Hershel."

"I'll go with you to D.C," Merle volunteered. "Let my brother and his woman stay behind to protect the camp. They'll do a good job of it, too."

"Thanks, Merle." Carol smiled over at Daryl's brother while Daryl narrowed his eyes.

"What do you want?" He grumped.

"Nothin'!" Merle held up his hands. "Honest." He crossed his heart. "I can't be nice to you two, now?"

Daryl's eyes didn't un-narrow. "I'm watchin' you, Merle."

"Hey, we ready to go yet?" Abraham stood in the middle of the camp and announced. "Daylight's wasting."

"You were the ones making a game of the Washington monuments," Rick grumbled so only the other three could hear before standing up and assuming his role as leader. "If everyone is done, let's load up the cars and get a move on. Keep an eye out for a house that can hold all of us...or houses." Nineteen members would be an extremely tight fit in any house unless it was a large mansion.

Abraham jumped in his army truck, followed by Rosita and Eugene and were off before everyone had climbed into the other vehicles. He was eager to finish his mission and distribute the cure. Whatever that would entail.

"So, if Eugene has the cure and we take it, does that mean we won't turn when we get bit?" Carol asked, now behind the wheel. Merle sat next to her, much to Daryl's annoyance. He had shoved Daryl out of the way before he could get in the passenger's seat.

"I guess," Merle said. "It ain't goin' to change back those who have turned already because they're dead."

"Even with the cure, I'd still want to avoid gettin' bitten," Daryl said from the back. "Walkers will tear the flesh from your bone. Even if their bite doesn't kill us, the blood loss and chance of infection will."

Carol glanced in the rearview mirror to get a look of Sophia's face. Her little girl was looking out the window. No trace of fear or worry could be detected, though Carol knew she was listening intently to the conversation. It saddened her to see that Sophia seemed to already be immuned to talk of death.

Daryl must have caught Carol's look and knew where her thoughts were because he changed the subject. "Do you think, if it ain't overrun or destroyed, we could stay in the White House? How would that sound?"

"What?" Merle looked confused at the conversation change, but when he looked at his brother, he saw that Daryl was looking at Sophia. "Oh."

"That would be so cool!" Sophia bounced in her seat. "I always wanted to see the inside! Especially the Circle Office!"

Merle barked out a loud laugh and turned to face the little girl. "I think you mean the Oval Office, honey."

"I know that's what it's called," Sophia said and gave him a sly smile. "I just wanted to see if you would laugh."

"That I did, missy." He reached back and tweaked Sophia on the nose, causing her to giggle and swat at his hand playfully. Carol looked once more into the rearview mirror and caught Daryl's eyes, who smiled...until Merle tweaked him in the hose. Hard.

"Ow, what the hell, Merle?" In retaliation, he reached over the seat and slapped his brother on in the back of the head, which caused an all out war between the two.

"Children, don't make me pull this truck over!" Carol said sternly. Instantly, Merle and Daryl sat back in their seats, hands in their laps and looking remorseful.

"Sorry," they chorused.

Carol laughed softly to herself. She would never trade these people in the truck for anything. They were the people she cared most for in the world.

* * *

A few hours later, Abraham's truck was pulling into a subdivision of sort. However, there were only three houses. Finished ones. The Turn must have happened in the middle of construction and the workers abandoned the project.

"I still want scout the houses out before we settle," Rick said climbing from his car. "Though the chances of someone living in them before is small." The rest of the group agreed.

Merle, Daryl and Noah took one house. Glenn, Maggie and Michonne another. While Rosita, T-Dog and Abraham took the last one. Everyone else stayed behind to watch out for walkers and to keep the children safe.

When they came back and gave the all clear, the whole group gathered together to decide who would be staying where. "Each house has four rooms," Rick said. "And of those rooms, each has a bunk bed."

Daryl, Carol, Merle, Sophia, Beth and Hershel would be staying in one of the houses. The girls were excited to sleep in a bunk bed, while everyone else was glad they would be able to sleep on a bed. No one had to be on a couch.

Maggie, Glenn, Rick, Lori, Carl, Michonne and Andrea would all be in another house. Carl was excited that he would get his own room while Andrea grumbled that she couldn't take the top bunk because of her knee.

Abraham, Rosita, Eugene, T-Dog, Randall and Noah were in the last house. Things could not have worked out more perfectly.

Rick pulled Daryl and Carol to the side before they went into their house. "If this thing with Eugene doesn't pan out, maybe we could make this place our home."

"Yeah, we could build a fence around the houses with all the leftover materials," Daryl suggested.

"And D.C isn't too far. We could go there for supplies, like we did in Atlanta," Carol added.

Rick nodded at them, liking their ideas. "This place could be something for us." He scratched at the beginning of his beard. "I almost hope that this thing with Eugene is a sham. Don't tell Lori I said that. She'd never forgive me." Understandably so. She wanted a world that wasn't so dangerous for her unborn child.

"You might get your wish," Daryl mumbled. "There's something going on that Eugene hasn't been telling us." From where they stood, they watched as Eugene seemed to be talking Rosita's ear off as she unloaded supplies from their truck and brought them to the house. She looked annoyed, but the man's mouth didn't stop running.

"I guess we'll find out tomorrow." Rick sighed. "Well, I should head up to the house. This place seems pretty secure and isolated, so we shouldn't have to keep watch. But lock the doors and no lights on when the sun goes down."

"Got it," Carol said. "Goodnight, Rick."

"Goodnight, you two." He gave the couple a wave over his shoulder as he walked up the house he, his wife, Carl, Glenn, Maggie, Michonne and Andrea would all share.

* * *

Beth and Sophia were sitting on the bottom bunk, giggling when Carol came in to check up on them. The room was set up to be a girl's room. The walls were pink, the comforters frilly and there were butterflies on the ceiling. It fit the two perfectly.

"Supper is almost ready," she said to the two. The stove had been gas and they were able to cook on them. Later, she would tell them that the water heater was gas, too and that they would have hot water. First, her and Daryl would make use of it.

A little while later, they were all seated around a table (a table!) with plates, silverware and cups. For a moment, the six of them could forget that they were in the middle of an apocalypse.

"Reminds me of the farm," Hershel said wistfully.

Everyone agreed.

If D.C didn't work out, they could be happy here. This could be a new home for them. All of them. Daryl reached under the table to squeeze Carol's hand. This could be the home they'd always wanted together.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Not happy with my chapter at all. But you'll always have good and bad ones. This one is definitely bad. Sorry!**

* * *

**Chapter Nineteen**

Hair still damp from the shower she had earlier with Daryl, Carol sat in the window seat in the room they were sleeping in and looked out to the backyard. Though, it was no bigger than a postage stamp. All this place needed was some woods nearby for Daryl to go hunting in. If they decided to stay here, he would have to travel a mile down the road before coming across a good patch of woods.

Daryl mumbled something in his sleep, but didn't wake. Carol smiled fondly at his back and went back to looking at the night. This could be a place where Sophia grew up and Carol was okay with that. After being on the road for so long, they needed a place to settle and Carol was thinking, even if Eugene had the cure, she would ask Daryl if they could stay here. Looking back at him, she wondered if he would say yes.

A dark figure on the edge of the property caught Carol's eyes when she once more looked out the window. Her first thought had been a walker, but when it started to pace back and forth, she knew it wasn't one.

"Eugene?" She whispered when she saw the shape of his familiar mullet. "What are you doing up?" Her suspicions of him grew.

Walking as quietly as she could, she went to the door and grabbed the flashlight on the dresser. She made sure Daryl was still asleep before she slipped out the door and into the hallway.

All the other bedroom doors were closed, so it was easy to walk by them without waking anyone. When she reached the back door, she opened it and stepped outside. The air was cool on her skin and she realized, with a start, that she was only wearing one of Daryl's shirt.

It was too late to go back up and change, now.

Carol flicked on the flashlight and shone it where she had last seen Eugene. It shone brightly on the back of his head and when he turned, he cried out as the light hurt his eyes. "Sorry!" Quickly, she aimed the flashlight down and allowed him to compose himself.

"Is that you, Carol?"

"Yes." She tilted the light up so it illuminated her face, much like one did when telling a scary story.

"What are you doing out this late? You must get your required hours of sleep before morning comes."

"I was going to ask the same question." She crossed her arms.

"A-Are you only wearing a shirt, Carol?" His eyes were glued to her legs and she was half-tempted to shine the light back in his eyes.

"Eyes up, buddy."

And they did move up...right to her breasts.

"To my face," she sighed. Daryl wasn't even that bad and he was the only man allowed to look at them.

"Oh, right. Sorry." He focused his gaze somewhere over her shoulder, unable to look her in the eye.

"So, why are you out here, Eugene? You seem troubled."

"Oh, uh... I just couldn't sleep. That's all." He gave her a smile...or a creepy imitation of one. Carol had to resist the urge to shudder.

Carol knew when someone was lying. She had dealt with her share of liars in her past. Ed being the biggest one. _"I only had drink tonight, honey." "I just stayed the night at a friend's house, sweetie." "I love you."_

Back then, she didn't care call him out on his lies. It would mean pain for her. But Ed was no longer around and she didn't have to be afraid anymore. "You're hiding something, Eugene," she said and narrowed her eyes.

The man stopped pacing and froze completely. He looked like a statue. "W-What?"

"You're hiding something. If it anyone affects _my_ family or puts them in danger, you better tell someone the truth. Or you'll have to deal with _me_."

Eugene's eyes went as round as saucers. "Uh...Um. Goodnight, ma'am." And he retreated quickly back into the house he shared with Abraham and Rosita. Carol sighed and went back to her house.

Clicking the flashlight off, she opened the back door into the kitchen as quietly as possible.

"Should I be jealous?"

Carol nearly jumped at the unexpected voice. She turned to see Daryl leaned against the counter and staring out the window above the sink. He stood in his boxers, white t-shirt and barefeet.

"Oh, please," she scoffed.

"Hey, I had to ask. After all, you were havin' a nightly meeting with ol' Eugene out there." Smirking, he came over and wrapped his arms around her. "Rolled over and found you weren't there, so I got up to look for you." He took a step back. "What were you doing out there, anyway?"

"I saw Eugene from our window and decided to see what he was up to."

"And what was he up to?" He leaned an elbow on the counter.

"Pacing. Acting suspicious."

"And I supposed you called him out on it." He smiled. "I bet he was more focused on seeing a half-naked woman in front of him, though."

"He was. I had to tell him a few times where my eyes were." She wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed his chin. "I'd tell you to kick his ass for me, but he's absolutely harmless"

Daryl chuckled. "I can still give him a hard time, though." In one fluid moment, he picked her up bridal style. "But for now, I plan on taking you back to bed."

"You won't see me protesting."

"Good." He kissed her and climbed up the steps to their bed. He placed her gently on her side of the bed, pulled the covers up to her chin before sliding in on his side. Carol tried not to pout, thinking for sure that when Daryl said he was taking her to bed, he meant something else. However, she knew they would have a big day tomorrow and needed their rest. Plus, they had taken a very intimate shower together.

"Stop thinkin' about my ripplin' muscles," Daryl said in her ear and wrapped an arm around her waist to spoon behind her. "Your face is all red."

"Oh, be quiet," she said with little conviction and settled deeper into his embrace.

* * *

"I would like Michonne, Glenn and Maggie to come with us to D.C," Rick said the next morning as the whole group convened in the front yards of the three homes. They had all eaten breakfast separately and around a table, once more.

"I'd like to come, Officer Friendly," Merle raised his good hand. "I've never been to D.C."

"This isn't no pleasure cruise," Abraham snapped. "We have to finish the mission as quickly as possible."

"You can finish your damn 'mission' but you ain't goin' to stop me from doin' some sight seein'." Merle glared over at the red-headed army man. It was weird that the two hadn't gotten into up to that point. After all, their personalities were similar. Though, Abraham seemed to have a one-track mind and right now, it was on Eugene and the mission.

"All right," Rick spoke up before a brawl started. "That leaves Daryl, Carol, Andrea, Lori, T-Dog and Hershel with the kids." Even though Randall was only a few years younger than Maggie, he was lumped in with the kids. With his leg still on the mend, he wouldn't' have been able to go into D.C, anyway.

"We'll leave in an hour. That should give you all enough time to get things together."

Abraham didn't look happy about having to wait. He was ready to go right then. But he didn't say anything and went with Rosita to look over their truck.

As the group dispersed to their houses, Carol noticed that Eugene hadn't been with the group during the meeting. "No Eugene, huh?" She said to Daryl, who 'hmm'ed in reply.

"Maybe he's still sleepin'. He was up late last night, after all."

Carol gave him a look and Daryl shrugged. "I don't know! That's the only thing I could think of."

"He's hiding something and I'm wondering if he's been debating whether to say something before they leave." She crossed her arms over her chest. "He better."

"But think about what Abraham will do to him if this was all fake."

"It's probably the reason why he's been hiding it for so long...if there is something to hide." She shrugged. "I guess we'll find out soon enough. No better get hurt because of him, though. Abraham will be the least of his worries."

"Hmm, you're sexy when you get all bad ass."

"Aren't I always sexy?" She winked at him over her shoulder and Daryl wished they had more than an hour before they had to see half their group off.

* * *

An hour later, they saw off the group that was going to D.C. Eugene hadn't said anything in that hour and looked extremely nervous and fidgety when he climbed into the truck with Abraham and Rosita. When he saw Carol staring at him, eyes narrowed, he quickly looked away.

The group that was not going to D.C stood and saw them all off as they drove down the street to the large city. No one moved until they were out of sight. Carol remained behind, watching the road. When Daryl saw that she wasn't following him, he turned and walked back to join her side.

"Those are my friends out there," she said. "And if that man is leading them into danger for no reason, I'll-"

However, she didn't finish her sentence because right then Abraham's truck was roaring back. The rest of the caravan followed behind somewhat reluctantly. Abraham slammed on his brakes only a few feet from Daryl and Carol. He climbed out, threw open the back seat and dragged Eugene out.

"I'm going to kill you, you lying bastard!" One of his meaty fists smashed into Eugene's face once, twice and when it looked like he wasn't going to stop. Daryl rushed forward. Rick and Merle jumped from their vehicles to help pry the man off and T-Dog came running from one of the houses.

So, Carol had been right. But she didn't feel very good about it.

* * *

**There will probably be about one or two more chapters after this!**

**Thanks for reading!**


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